cc 


OULD  NEWBURY": 


HISTORICAL  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


John  J.  Currier. 
w 


ILLUSTRATED. 


BOSTON: 

DAMRELL    AND     UPHAM. 

1896. 


V74 
H4C8 


COl'VRIGHT,    1S96 


JOHN    J.    CURRIER. 


GEO.  H.  ELLIS,  PRINTER,   141    FRANKLIN    STREET,  BOSTON 


PREFACE, 


In  this  volume  I  have  attempted  to  trace  the  history  of 
some  of  the  ancient  houses  and  notable  places  within  the 
limits  of  "  Ould  Newbury,"  and  have  also  endeavored  to 
embody  in  brief  biographical  sketches  some  of  the  facts  and 
incidents  connected  with  the  mercantile,  literary,  and  political 
life  of  the  town.  I  have  been  compelled  to  leave  unnoticed 
many  buildings  and  places  of  historic  interest,  and  have 
found  it  impossible  to  sketch,  even  briefly,  the  work  and 
influence  of  the  distinguished  men  and  women  of  Newbur)' 
birth  and  parentage  who  are  noz^'  living  in  this  community, 
or  elsewhere,  without  very  materially  increasing  the  size  of 
this  volume,  which  is  already  too  large  for  convenient  use. 
I  trust,  however,  that  a  more  comprehensive  work,  giving  the 
history  of  Newbury,  Newburyport,  and  West  Newbury  from 
their  incorporation  down  to  the  present  time,  will  soon  be 
undertaken  by  some  competent  and  careful  writer,  who  will 
collect  and  preserve  for  future  generations  the  names  of  the 
men  that  are  necessarily  excluded  from  these  pages,  with  a 
full  and  detailed  account  of  the  important  events  in  which 
they  have  participated. 

The  facts  and  incidents  contained  in  these  sketches  ha\'e 
been  gathered  from  ever}'  available  source  ;  but  my  thanks 
are  especially  due  to  Sidney  Perley,  Esq.,  of  Salem,  Mass., 
and  to  John  Ward  Dean,  A.  M.,  librarian  of  the  New  Eng- 
land Historic-Genealogical  Society  of  Boston,  for  valuable 
advice  and  assistance  in  preparing  them  for  the  press. 
I  desire  also  to  acknowledge  my  indebtedness  to  Abner 
C.  Goodell,  Jr.,  commissioner  for  the  publication  of  the  Acts 
and  Resolves  of  the  Province  of  Massachusetts  Bay ;  to 
Walter  K.  Watkins,  secretary  of  the   Massachusetts   Society 


661533 


4  PREFACE 

of  Colonial  Wars,  Boston,  Mass.  ;  to  William  Little,  Esq., 
president  of  the  Historical  Society  of  Old  Newbury  ;  and  to 
Messrs.  Lothrop  Withington,  Isaac  W.  Little,  Oliver  B. 
Merrill,  and  many  other  citizens  of  Newburyport,  for  similar 
service  in  the  examination  of  parish,  town,  and  State  records. 

Great  pains  have  been  taken  to  verify  every  statement  and 
to  give  the  facts  as  they  exist  without  exaggeration  or  embel- 
lishment. Many  errors  will  undoubtedly  be  discovered  in 
the  text.  In  some  instances  names  and  dates  will  be  found 
incorrect,  owing  to  discrepancies  between  town  and  family 
records.  The  authorities  that  are  relied  upon  to  corroborate 
and  support  the  conclusions  reached  in  these  sketches  are 
mentioned,  in  order  to  facilitate  investigation  ;  and  the  titles 
to  estates  can  be  verified  by  consulting  the  Essex  registry 
of  deeds,  the  book  and  page  of  reference  being  given. 

Most  of  the  topics  selected  for  consideration  in  this  volume 
are  more  or  less  intimately  connected  with  the  growth  and 
development  of  the  town,  and  have  been  arranged  in  chrono- 
logical order,  so  far  as  possible,  beginning  with  the  "  Landing 
at  Parker  River"  and  ending  with  "Oak  Hill  Cemetery." 
There  is  necessarily  some  repetition  of  statement  in  these 
pages,  inasmuch  as  each  sketch  is  intended  to  be  complete  in 
itself,  and  in  a  measure  independent  of  those  that  precede  it. 

The  illustrations  are  from  negatives  taken  by  Messrs. 
Robert  E.  Mosely,  Carl  Meinerth,  Hiram  P.  Macintosh, 
Selwyn  C.  Reed,  William  C.  Thompson,  Edward  E.  Bartlett. 
and  John  Osgood.  Some  of  these  negatives  were  made 
expressly  for  this  work,  while  others  are  more  than  thirty 
years  old  and  represent  views  and  scenes  that  cannot  now 
be  obtained  by  the  use  of  the  camera. 

I  have  found  the  task  of  collecting  the  material  and  pre- 
paring this  book  for  publication  somewhat  difficult  and  labori- 
ous, and  have  felt  obliged  to  omit  man}'  topics  that  would 
naturally  find  a  place  in  a  work  of  this  description  ;  but, 
notwithstanding  its  many  im]:)erfections  and  deficiencies,  I 
venture  to  offer  it  to  the  ])ublic  as  ni}-  humble  contribution 
to  the  history  of   ni)'   nati\e  town. 

J.  J.  c. 

NKWnrKYi'oKr,  December  lo,  iSy6. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

The  Landing  at  Parker  River 9 

The  Settlement  at  the  Lower  Green 13 

The  Spencer-Pierce  House 25 

Edward  Rawson 43 

The  Ferry  at  Carr's  Island 55 

John  Poore,  of  Newbury  Neck 81 

Thomas  Hale,  of  Newbury  Neck 85 

^'Trayneing  Green"  and  New   Pond 91 

Burying  Ground  of  the  First  Parish  in  Newbury in 

Watts'  Cellar  and  Frog  Pond 120 

Titles  to  Land  between  Ordway's  Lane  and  Chandler's  Lane  139 

Wharves  and  Docks 151 

The  Noyes  House       165 

The  Coffin  House 169 

Blue  Anchor  Tavern 175 

Ilsley  House 189 

The  First  Town  and  Court  House  in  Newbury 198 

Thorlay's  Bridge  over  Parker  River 201 

Plum  Island 212 

Deer  Island 221 

Bartlett's  Cove 230 

Samuel  Sewall,   Chief  Justice  of  Massachusetts  Bay  ....  247 

The  Toppan  House 261 

Mill  at  the  Mouth  of  Artichoke  River 269 

Old  Ship-yards 275 

Indian  Attack  on  the  P"amily  of  John  Brown  at  Turkey  Hill  287 

Byfield  Parish 291 

Homestead  of  Benjamin   Pearson 301 

The  Longfellow  House,  Byfield  Parish 305 

Dummer  Academy 313 

Fatherland  Farm 327 

Theophilus  Parsons 331                 1/ 

Pipe  Stave  Hill 339 

Indian   Hill 347 


6  TABLE    OF  CONTENTS 

The  Sawvkk   Housk 357 

Thk  IUryim;  Ckou.nd  at  Sawvkr's  Hill .  363 

QuKKN  Anne's  Cilm'kl  and  ISellkvii.lk  Cemetekv 368 

Map  UK   riiK  West   Parish 391 

St.   1'aul's   Church 396 

The  Devil's  De\ ...  421 

The  Old  Elm  oe  Newkury 425 

Third   Parlsh  in  Newbury 430 

Lowell  House 449 

Old  Hill  Burvi.nc  Oround 453 

Colonel  Moses  Titcomi;    .     .  464 

The  Dalton   House 475 

Nathaniel  Knapi> 4S4 

Wolfe  Tavern 492 

The  First  Preshyterian   Mekiinc-House 50S 

Rev.  Oeorge  Whitefield 526 

Parker  River  Bridce 530 

Colonel  Moses  Little 541 

Patrick  Tr.\cy 545 

PuiiLic  Likrary  Buildino 551 

Dexter  House 564 

Lowell-Johnson   Hoi'se .  577 

Newburyport  Marine  Sociepv 5S6 

Essex-Merrimack   Bridge 593 

New   Hill  Buryinc.  Ground 605 

Barti.et  .^L\LI 611 

Market  Square 622 

Moses  Brown 632 

Abraham  Wiieei.wru;h  p 638 

The  CiReat  Fire 646 

William   Wheelwric.ht  651 

Hannah  F.  Gould 659 

Caleb  Cushino 664 

Cornelius  Conway  Fei.ton 672 

Samuel  Morse  Fklion 677 

Willi  \.\i    LLO^■D  (iAkuisoN       681 

James  Parton 6S7 

EisEN  F.  SpoM'. 693 

Oak   Hill  Cimeipry 701 

Appendix 709 

I.NDEX 7' 5 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


The  Landing-Place,   Parker  River.     Frivifispiece. 


Plan  of  Settlement  at  Lower  Clreen   .  14 
The  Spencer-Pierce  House   ....  26 
Plan    showing    Division  of    Spencer- 
Pierce  Farm,  1778 39 

Rear  of  Spencer-Pierce  House  ...  40 

Edward  Rawson 42 

Rebecca  Rawson 46 

Pillsbury  House 52 

Carr's  Island  —  Old  House  and  Ferry 

Landing 56 

Carr's  Island,  1896       78 

Homestead  of  John  Poore    ....  82 

Hale  House,  Newburj-  Neck     ...  84 

"  Trayneing  Green  "  and  New  Pond  .  90 

New  Pond  on  "  Trayneing  Green  "     .  96 

Grave  of  Rev.  Thomas  Parker       .     .  1 10 
Map  of  a  Portion  of  Newbury  .       118,  119 

The  March-Haskell  House  ....  i  24 
March-Haskell  House. —  A  Corner  of 

the  Living-room 126 

March-Haskell  House. —  Fire-place  in 

Southwest  Chamber 126 

House  occupied  by  John  Weed,  1700  136 

View  of  Wharves  in  Newburyport  160 

I'he  Noyes  House 164 

The  Coffin  House 168 

Dresser  in  Coffin  House 174 

The  Ilsley  House 190 

Thorlay's    Bridge 202 

Milestone  at  "Trayneing  Green  "  .     .  209 

Milestone  at  Four-rock  Bridge  .     .     .  209 
Milestone  at  Corner  of  the  Boston  and 

Middle  Roads 210 

Milestone  at  Dummer  Academy     .     .  210 

Plum  Lsland  Light-house       .     .     .     .  216 

Plum  Island  Hotel 217 


PAGE 

Flat-iron  Point. — "Joppa"  ....  218 

Clam  Houses. — "Joppa"      ....  219 

Plum  Island  River  and  Marshes    .      .  219 

Plum  Island  Beach 220 

Deer  Island 224 

Residence  of  Mrs.  Harriet  P.  Spofford  226 

Bartlett  House  at  Bartlett's  Cove  .     .  234 

Plan  of  Proposed  Ferry  Route       .     .  238 

Gravestone  of  Henry  .Sewall     .     .     .  249 

Samuel  Sewall 256 

The  Toppan  House 260 

Mill  at  the  Mouth  of  Artichoke  River  268 

John  Currier,  Jr.'s  .Ship-yard,  1857     .  282 

John  Currier,  Jr 2S4 

Scene  of  the  Indian  Depredations  at 

Turkey  Hill 286 

Old  Parsonage  House,  Byfield  Parish, 

built  in  1703 292 

Homestead  of  Benjamin  Pearson  .     .  302 

The  Longfellow  House 306 

Dummer  Academy 314 

Dummer  Mansion 318 

Lieutenant-Governor  Dummer .     .     .  320 

Katherine  (Dudley)  Dummer    .     .     .  321 

Fatherland  Farm 326 

Theophilus   Parsons 332 

The  Theophilus  Parsons  House,  1S50  334 
Merrimack    River   from    Pipe    Stave 

Hill 340 

Ben  :  Perley  Poore 352 

House  at  Indian  Hill 354 

The  Sawyer  House 358 

Burying  Ground  at  Sawyer's  Hill  .     .  362 

Belleville  Cemetery 388 

A  Plan  of  the  West   Parish  of  New- 
bury, New  Town 392 


ILLUSTKATIOXS 


TAtiE 

St.  Paul's  Church,  built  in  iSoo     .     .  41J 

Interior  of  St.  Paul's  Church     .     .     .  415 

The  Devil's  Den      . 420 

Old  Elm  of  Newbury 424 

Interior  of  Meeting-house,   First  Re- 
ligious Society,  Xewburyport     .     .  444 
Spire  of  Meeting-house  built  in   iSoi  447 

Lowell  House 44S 

Old  Hill  Burying  Ground     ....  454 
Gravestones  of   Timothy  De.xter  and 

Wife 456 

Gravestone    in     Old      Hill      Burying 

Ground 460 

Colonel  Moses  Titcomb 466 

Residence  of  Colonel  Moses  Titcomb  472 

The  Dalton  House 474 

Dalton  House 476 

Dalton  House  Stable 477 

Tristram  Dalton 47S 

Plall  and  Staircase,  Dalton   House     .  48 1 
Corner  of  Middle    and    Independent 

Streets,  Xewburyport 490 

Wolfe  Tavern 502 

First      Presbyterian     Meeting-house, 

built  in    1756 519 

Pulpit  in  First  Presbyterian  Meeting- 
house         521 

Cenotaph  in  First  Presbyterian  Meet- 
ing-house    .     .     .' 522 

House  on  School  Street  where  Rev. 

George  Whitefield  died     ....  52S 

Parker  River  Bridge 532 

House  built  by  Colonel  Moses  Little  540 

Patrick  Tracy 546 

House  built  by  Patrick  Tracy  in  1771  5:^2 

Nathaniel  Tracy 554 

Advertisement  of  Sun  Hotel      .     .     .  559 

Public  Library  Building 562 

Jonathan  Jackson 566 

Hannah  (Tracy)  Jackson      ....  567 

Dexter  House 574 

Lowell-Johnson  House 5S0 

Hall  and  Staircase ^82 


PACiE 

Hall  of  Xewburyport  .Marine  Society  590 
Map    showing    Location    of    Esse.x- 

Merrimack  Bridge 595 

Bridge  erected  from   Plans  furnished 

by  Timothy  Palmer 596 

Long      Arch      of      Essex-Merrimack 

Bridge 598 

Esse.K-Merrimack  Bridge,  from  Laurel 

Hill 600 

Essex-Merrimack  Bridge 602 

Grave   of   Caleb  Gushing,  Xew   Hill 

Burying  Ground 606 

Land   and    Buildings   in  the  Vicinity 

of  Frog  Pond 610 

.School-house  at  Northwesterly  end  of 

Bartlet  Mall 615 

High  .School    Building  at  Southeast- 
erly End  of  Bartlet  Mall    .     .     .     .  617 

liartlet  Mall,  iSoo 618 

X'ortherly  Side  of  Market  Square  .     .  626 

Southeasterly  Side  of  Market  Square  630 

Brown   Square 634 

House     built    by    Abraham     Wheel- 
wright in  1806 642 

Abraham  Wheelwright 644 

Map    showing    the    Extent    of    the 

"  Great  Fire  "  of  iSri 64S 

William  Wheelwright 653 

Home  for  Aged  Females 656 

Residence  of  Hannah  F.  Gould     .     .  660 

Caleb  Gushing 666 

Residence  of  Caleb  Gushing     .     .     .  670 

Birthplace  of  Cornelius  Felton      .     .  674 

liirthplace  of  Samuel  Morse  Felton    .  67S 

liirthplace  of  William  Lloyd  Garrison  6S2 

Residence  of  James  Parton  ....  688 

James  Parton 690 

Residence  of  Hon.   Eben  F.  Stone     .  694 

Eben  F.  Stone 696 

Gateway  to  Oak  Hill  Cemetery  —  Gift 

of  John  S.  Tappan 700 

Gateway  to  ( )ak  Hill  Cemetery.^  Gift 

of  lohn  T.  lirown 702 


THE  LANDING  AT  PARKER  RiVER, 


In  February,  1633-4,  the  Council  for  New  England, 
assembled  at  Whitehall,  England,  adopted  an  order  placing 
certain  restrictions  on  the  transportation  of  passengers  and 
merchandise  to  the  colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay  ;  and  before 
the  ship  "Mary  and  John"  and  eight  other  vessels,  then 
lying  in  the  river  Thames,  were  allowed  to  sail,  instructions 
were  issued  expressly  providing  that  the  captains  in  command 
of  these  vessels  "  shall  cause  the  Prayers  contained  in  the 
Book  of  Common  Prayers,  established  in  the  Church  of 
England,  to  be  said  daily  at  the  usual  hours  of  Morning  and 
Evening  Prayers,  and  that  they  cause  all  Persons  on  board 
said  ships  to  be  present  at  the  same." 

In  the  ship  "Mary  and  John"  came  Thomas  Parker, 
James  Noyes,  John  Spencer,  Henry  Short,  Henry  Lunt, 
John  Bartlett,  and  many  others,  who  ultimately  settled  in 
Newbury.  Upon  their  arrival  in  New  England  most  of 
these  passengers  went  to  Agawam,  now  Ipswich,  Mass., 
where  they  remained  until  the  spring  of   1635. 

Meanwhile  Sir  Richard  Saltonstall,  Henry  Sewall,  Richard 
and  Stephen  Dummer,  with  others  from  Wiltshire,  England, 
had  organized  a  company  for  the  purpose  of  stock-raising  at 
a  time  when  the  prices  for  cattle,  horses,  and  sheep  were  at 
their  highest.  They  added  to  their  own  domestic  herds  some 
imported  Plemish  stock,  and  persuaded  John  Spencer,  Henry 
Short,  Richard  Kent,  Thomas  Parker,  and  others  to  join 
them  in  the  enterprise,  and  establish  a  settlement  on  the 
river   Ouascacunquen,   now    Parker    River. 

Sept.  3,  1633,  the  General  Court  granted  "John  Win- 
throp,  junior,  and  his  assignes "  permission  to  set  up  a 
"trucking"  or  trading  house  on   the    Merrimack    River    (see 


lO  OULD    NEWBURY 

Colonial  Records,  book   i,  page  io8)  ;  and  under  date  of  May 
6,  1635,  the  House  of  Deputies  passed  the  following  order  :  — 

Ouascacunquen  is  allowed  by  the  court  to  be  a  plantation,  and  it  is 
referred  to  Mr,  (John)  Humphrey,  Mr.  (John)  Endicott,  Captain  (Xa- 
,4:hanie'ij/'nuti''dr;  ajid  Captain  (William)  Trask,  or  any  three  of  them,  to 
spf  out  the  bounds.af  Ipswich  and  Quascacunquen,  or  so  much  thereof 
iciS"  ihf:r  lean  >  aVtl  ,th«  name  of  said  plantation  shall  be  changed,  and 
shall  hereafter  be  called   Newberry. 

Further,  it  is  ordered  that  it  shall  be  in  the  power  of  the  court  to 
take  order  that  the  said  plantation  shall  receive  a  sufficient  company  to 
make  a  competent  towne. 

Previous  to  this  date,  undoubtedly,  a  few  venturesome 
fishermen  had  built  temporary  residences  on  the  banks  of  the 
Merrimack  and  Uuascacunciuen  rivers  ;  but  they  were  looked 
upon  as  trespassers  and  intruders,  for  the  General  Court  had 
forbidden  all  persons  from  settling  within  their  jurisdiction 
without  leave. 

Rev.  Thomas  Parker  and  those  associated  with  him,  having 
obtained  permission  to  begin  a  plantation  "to  be  called  New- 
berry," made  preparations  to  remove  from  Ipswich  early  in 
the  spring.  There  were  no  roads  through  the  trackless 
forest,  and  the  transportation  of  women  and  children  and 
household  goods  overland  was  impracticable.  Tradition 
asserts  that  they  came  by  the  way  of  Plum  Island  Soiuid, 
in  open  boats,  and  landed,  in  the  month  of  May  or  June, 
1635,  on  the  north  shore  of  what  is  now  the  ri\'er  Parker, 
in  a  little  cove  about  one  hundred  rods  below  the  bridge  ; 
Nicholas  Noyes,  the  brother  of  Rev.  James  Noyes,  being 
the  first   to   leap   ashore. 

Near  tliis  secluded  spot  a  niunbcr  of  siunmcr  cottages 
ha\e  recently  been  erected,  giving  to  the  place  a  ])leasant, 
home-like  look  ;  l)ut  two  centiu'ies  and  a  Iialf  ago  the  ])ros- 
pect   was   less  agreeable  and   inviting. 

"...  Eastward,  cold,  wide  marshes  stretched  away, 
Dull,  dreary  flats  without  a  bush  or  tree, 
O'ercrossed  bv  winding  creeks,  where  twice  a  day 

C/urgled  the  waters  of  the  moon-struck  sea; 
And  faint  with  distance  came  the  stifled  roar, 
'The  meianclioly  la])se  of  waves  on  tlic  low  shoi'e." 


THE   LANDING   AT  PARKER   RIVER  II 

Inland  hills  rising  above  hills  stood  like  sentinels  over 
the  almost  unbroken  wilderness.  Centuries  before  this  mem- 
orable landing  Indians  had  hunted  in  these  forests  and  fished 
in  the  placid  stream  that  ebbs  and  flows  to  the  falls  of  New- 
bury ;  but  only  a  few  of  that  race  remained  to  resist  the 
encroachments  of  the  white-faced  strangers.  Dismal  and 
gloomy  must  have  been  the  outlook  as  these  brave  pioneers 
gathered  together  at  the  close  of  the  first  day,  and  contem- 
plated the  prospect  before  them.  They  knew  that  wild 
beasts  were  roaming  through  the  forests,  and  whether  the 
red  men  would  welcome  them  as  friends  or  foes  was  as  yet 
Uncertain. 

"  Their  descendants  can  have  but  a  faint  idea  of  the  difficulties  they 
encountered,  and  of  the  dangers  that  continually  hung  over  their  heads, 
threatening  every  moment  to  overwhelm  them  like  a  torrent,  and  sweep 
them,  with  those  whom  they  dearly  loved,  to  the  silent  tomb." 

Undismayed  by  these  difficulties  and  dangers,  the  new 
settlers  instinctively  turned  their  attention  to  the  cultivation 
of  the  soil  and  the  development  of  the  resources  of  nature. 
Here  and  there  along  the  winding  river  they  appropriated 
the  few  clear  spots  where  the  natives  had  formerly  planted 
corn,  and  promptly  took  possession  of  the  neighboring 
marshes  where  the  growing  crop  of  salt  grass  promised  an 
abundant  harvest.  There  was  no  lack  of  work  ;  no  room  for 
idle  dreamers.  Houses  had  to  be  built,  land  ploughed  and 
tilled,  and  sheds  erected  for  the  protection  of  cattle  before 
winter  set  in.  House  lots,  planting  lots,  and  meadow  lots 
were  laid  out  and  granted  to  individual  members  of  the 
community,  and  the  original  entries,  giving  names  and  dates, 
can  still  be  seen  on  the  old  records  of  the  town  ;  but  how 
many  houses  were  erected  or  how  many  families  settled  in 
Newbury  during  the  first  year  of  its  existence  it  is  impossible 
to  state  with  exactness. 

Governor  Winthrop,  in  his  History  of  New  England,  under 
date  of  June  3,  1635,  records  the  arrival  of  two  ships  with 
Dutch  cattle;  and  the  same  day  the  ship  *' James"  arrived 
from   Southampton,   bringing,   among  other  passengers,  John 


12  OULD   lYElVBURY 

Pike,  father  of  the  famous  Robert  Pike,  of  Salisbur}',  and  one 
Thomas  Coleman,  who  had  been  employed  by  the  projectors 
of  the  stock-raising  company  to  provide  food  for  the  cattle 
and  take  care  of  them  for  a  specified  term  of  years. 

In  the  Massachusetts  Colony  Records,  under  date  of  July 
8,  1635  :  — 

It  is  ordered  that  there  shall  be  a  convenient  quantity  of  land  sett 
out  by  Mr.  Dumer  and  Mr.  Bartholemewe,  within  the  bounds  of  New- 
bury, for  the  keeping  of  the  sheepe  and  cattell  that  came  over  in  the 
Dutch  shipps  this  yeare,  and  to  belong  to  the  owners  of  said  cattell. 

Evidently,  those  who  were  engaged  in  this  new  enterprise 
intended  to  utilize  the  vacant  lands  and  at  the  same  time 
establish  a  safe  and  profitable  business  for  themselves  ;  but 
Coleman,  becoming  dissatisfied,  declined  to  carry  out  his 
part  of  the  contract,  and  the  (icneral  Court  finall)'  ordered 
a  division  of  the  grain  that  had  been  imported,  and  instructed 
each  owner  to  take  care  of  his  own  cattle. 


THE  SETTLEMENT  AT  THE  LOWER  GREEN. 


The  earl}'  records  of  the  town  of  Newbur}'  ha\'e  been 
sadly  neglected  and  abused.  The  first  volume  now  contains 
less  than  one-half  the  entries  originally  recorded  there.  The 
pages  upon  which  important  events  were  carefully  inscribed 
have  been  lost  or  stolen.  For  several  successive  years  all 
the  entries  are  missing,  except  a  few  scattering  reports  that 
have  escaped  the  ravages  of  time  and  the  cupidity  of  reckless 
historical  investigators. 

The  value  and  importance  of  these  old  records  cannot  be 
overestimated.  They  are  of  vital  interest  to  all  who  are  in 
search  of  genealogical  or  historical  information  ;  and,  if  lost 
or  destroyed,  they  cannot  be  duplicated  or  replaced.  Some 
action  should  be  taken  to  provide  against  this  possible  con- 
tingency before  it  is  too  late,  and  special  efforts  should  be 
made  to  preserve  and  protect  these  \-aluable  memorials  of 
the  past.  The  work  of  repairing  and  rebinding  the  torn  and 
mutilated  \'olumes,  and  providing  a  larger  and  more  com- 
modious safe  for  their  accommodation,  has  recently  been 
urged  upon  the  proper  authorities  with  some  degree  of 
success. 

Newbury,  Newburyport,  and  West  Newbury  —  all  within 
the  territorial  limits  of  the  old  town  incorporated  in  1635  — 
are  particularly  interested  in  its  past  history,  and  by  united 
action  and  hearty  co-operation  could  provide  for  the  publica- 
tion of  all  manuscript  papers  and  documents  of  importance, 
including  births,  deaths,  and  marriages,  from  1635  down  to 
the  year  1819,  when  West  Newbury  became  a  separate  and 
independent  town,  and  practically  make  the  records  acces- 
sible to  every  citizen,  while  at  the  same  time  the  original 
books    and  papers  would   be    placed    be}'ond  the    danger    of 


■'.OWKOJ  J1V0 


THE   SETTLEMEXT  AT  THE   LOWER    GREEN  15 

wear  and  tear  from  constant  daily  use.  Boston,  Braintree, 
Dedham,  and  other  towns  and  cities  have  ah'eady  led  the 
way  by  publications  of  a  similar  character  ;  and,  certainly, 
the  records  of  the  town  of  Newbury  are  of  sufficient  impor- 
tance to  warrant  their  preservation  in  the  form  and  shape 
suggested. 

Although  defective  and  incomplete,  yet  the  scattered  en- 
tries that  remain  upon  the  slowly  fading  pages  disclose  many 
interesting  facts  relating  to  the  settlement  of  the  "old  town  " 
at  the  Lower  Green.  At  first  all  public  business  was  trans- 
acted in  committee  of  the  whole.  Later  the  General  Court 
authorized  the  election  of  prudential  men,  not  exceeding 
seven,  "to  order  the  affairs  of  the  towne. "  John  Wood- 
bridge  was  the  first  clerk.  His  term  of  service  extended 
from  May,  1635,  to  October,  1638.  His  handwriting  is  fine 
and  woman-like  in  appearance,  yet  perfectly  plain  and  legible. 
Edward  Rawson  was  the  second  town  clerk.  He  served 
until  April,  1646,  when  he  was  chosen  one  of  the  deputies 
to  the  General  Court,  and  afterward  secretary  of  the  colony 
of  Massachusetts  Bay.  His  records  are  written  in  a  scrawly, 
cramped  hand,  and  are  very  difficult  to  decipher.  John 
Lowell  was  the  next  clerk,  but  he  died  a  few  months  after 
his  election.  Only  a  few  brief  entries  are  to  be  found  in  his 
handwriting.  Anthony  Somerby  was  the  fourth  clerk,  and 
served  until  October,  1680,  when  the  first  volume  closes. 
Henry  Short  was  his  successor.  Previous  to  this  time  the 
transactions  of  the  town  and  of  the  selectmen  were  en- 
tered in  the  same  volume,  without  method  or  classification  ; 
but  from  and  after  this  date  they  were  recorded  in  separate 
books. 

A  full  and  complete  record  of  the  lots  laid  out  and  granted 
from  the  early  settlement  of  the  town  has  been  made  up 
and  incorporated  in  the  Proprietors'  Book.  These  records 
were  originally  entered,  with  other  proceedings  of  the  town 
and  of  the  selectmen,  in  the  only  volume  then  in  use  ;  but, 
during  the  clerkship  of  the  methodical  and  careful  Henry 
Short,  they  w^ere  copied  into  a  separate  book,  which  includes 
grants  subsequently  made,  and  they  are  now  in  a  good  state 
of  preservation  and  of  great  historical  value. 


1 6  OULD   NEWBURY 

From  these  records  it  aj^pears  that  house  lots  were  laid 
out  and  surveyed  on  both  sides  of  the  river  Parker,  at  Kent's 
Island,  and  on  the  banks  of  Little  River  ;  but  the  i:)rincii)al 
settlement  was  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  Lower  (ireen 
where  the  meeting-house  was  located. 

The  plan  on  page  14  is  taken  from  a  drawing  made  by 
Daniel  Dole  in  1828,  and,  though  not  strictly  accurate  in  all 
its  details,  it  gives  a  fairly  correct  idea  of  the  size  and 
locality  of  the  house  lots  assigned  to  the  first  settlers.  The 
names  of  the  original  grantees  will  be  found  on  the  plan, 
with  i)age  references  to  the  town  records  where  the  grants 
are  recorded  ;  but  farm  lots,  planting  lots,  and  meadow  lots, 
beyond  the  prescribed  limit  of  half  a  mile  from  the  meeting- 
house, are  omitted  for  want  of  room. 

Tradition  asserts  that  the  Rev.  Thomas  Parker  preached  his 
first  sermon  under  the  branches  of  a  majestic  oak  on  the 
northern  bank  of  the  ri\'er  Parker,  about  one  hundred  yards 
below  where  the  bridge  now  stands  ;  and  at  the  close  of  the 
sermon  a  church  covenant  was  agreed  u})on,  and  the  Re\'. 
lliomas  Parker  was  chosen  pastor.  The  sworn  testimony  ot 
John  Pike,  Robert  Pike,  John  Emery,  and  others,  given  at 
the  court  in  Ipswich  in  1669,  corroborates  and  confirms  the 
report  that  the  first  meeting  was  held  "on  the  Sabbath,  in 
the  open  air  under  a  tree." 

Whether  the  meeting-house  was  built  upon  the  Green, 
as  indicated  in  the  drawing  made  by  Mr.  Daniel  Dole,  or 
whether  it  was  located  on  a  lot  farther  to  the  north,  near 
the  old  burying-ground,  cannot  be  determined  now  with  abso- 
lute certainty.  But,  wherever  located,  it  was  probabl}'  a 
rude  structure  built  of  logs,  with  the  interx'cning  cracks  and 
crevices  filled  with  clay  to  keei)  out  the  cold. 

r^'aring  a  sudden  attack  from  the  Indians  during  service- 
time,  it  was  ])ro\ided  that  all  able-bodied  inhabitants  of  the 
town  should  be  di\ided  into  four  et|ual  companies,  ami  placed 
under  the  charge  of  John  Pike,  Nicholas  Holt,  John  leaker, 
and  lulmund  Greenleaf.  These  four  men  were  reciuiied  to 
notif}'  e\er)'  ])erson  under  their  charge  "to  bring  their  armes 
compleat  one  .Sabbath   (la\'  in   a   month   and   ihe   lectui'e  day, 


THE   SETTLEMENT  AT   THE    LOWER    GREEN  17 

following  in  order  successively  one  after  another,"  and  also 
to  cause  every  person  in  their  several  divisions  "  to  stand 
sentinell  at  the  doores  all  the  time  of  the  publick  meeting, 
every  one  after  another,  either  by  himself,  in  person,  or  by  a 
sufficient  substitute." 

Notwithstanding  the  perils  and  dangers  to  which  they 
were  exposed,  the  population  steadily  increased  in  numbers 
and  gradually  improved  in  worldly  condition.  Among  those 
who  came  to  Newbury  in  1639  were  John,  Richard,  and  Per- 
cival  Lowell,  who  had  been  merchants  in  Bristol,  England, 
and  Anthony  Somerby,  who  was  the  first  schoolmaster  em- 
plo}'ed  b}'  the  town.      From  the  records  it  appears  :  — 

There  was  granted  unto  Anthony  Somerby  in  the  year  1639  for  his 
encouragement  to  keepe  schoole  for  one  yeare  four  akers  of  upland 
over  the  great  river  in  the  necke.  also  sixe  akers  of  saU  marsh  next  to 
Abraham  Toppan's  twenty  akers. 

Some  years  later  (May  14,  1653),  after  the  removal  of  the 
settlement  to  the  Upper  Green,  two  or  three  miles  farther 
north,  the  town  "  voted  to  pay  £,2\  yearly  to  maintain  a 
free  school  to  be  held  at  the  meeting-house,  the  master  to 
teach  all  children  sent  to  him  so  soon  as  they  have  their 
letters   and    begin   to   read." 

Important  business  enterprises  were  undertaken  at  a  very 
early  date.  Nicholas  Easton,  afterward  governor  of  Rhode 
Island,  was  the  first  tanner  of  whom  we  have  an)'  account. 
He  is  supposed  to  have  occupied  a  tan-yard  on  the  banks  of 
the  river  Parker,  and  some  traces  of  the  old  vats  are  still 
pointed  out  on  land  owned  at  the  present  time  by  Mr. 
Nathaniel  Dole.  A  few  years  later  John  Bartlett  started 
a  tanning  establishment  at  Bartlett's  Cove,  and  his  descend- 
ants continued  the  business  for  more  than  two  centuries. 

P'rom  the  will  of  Richard  Dole,  dated  March  25,  1698,  and 
proved  July  30,  1705,  it  appears  that  he  was  engaged  in  mer- 
cantile pursuits  at  an  early  date,  and  was  also  a  dealer  in 
hides  and  leather.  He  came  to  Newbury  from  Bristol,  Eng- 
land, in  1639.  He  settled  at  the  Lower  Green,  and  probably 
purchased  the  land  owned  by  Nicholas  Easton,  who  had  been 


1 8  OULD   NEWBURY 

disfranchised  l^y  the  General  Court,  and  had  remoxed  to 
Rhode  Island.  The  items  relating'  to  the  disposal  of  the  tan- 
house  and  tan-yard  read  as  follows  :  — 

To  my  son  Richard  Dole.  .  .  .  Also  one  half  of  my  bark  house  & 
mill  &  of  all  my  other  implements  of  Tanning.  Also  one  half  of  my 
Tan  House  &  tan  yard  &  pitts,  with  Eighty  Rods  of  Land  on  the 
Northerly  side  of  the  wharf  to  be  laid  out  from  the  Green  to  the  Gutter 
so  as  may  be  most  convenient  for  a  Tanning  design,  the  one  half  of 
the  said  Land  that  the  bark  house,  pits,  &  Tan  house  stands  on  to  be 
part  of  the  Eighty  rods  of  Land,  with  the  proviso  that  neither  he  nor  his 
shall  have  Liberty  to  set  up  a  dwelling  house  on  the  said  Eighty  Rods 
or  any  part  thereof.  .  .  .  Also  I  give  to  my  said  son  Richard  Dole  one 
half  of  the  hides  and  leather  that  belong  to  me  in  the  pits  or  elsewhere. 
I  give  to  my  son  William  Dole,  and  heirs  forever,  my  Dwelling  house 
that  I  now  dwell  in.  Together  with  my  barn  &  other  out-houses,  with  the 
Lands  that  they  Now  Stand  on,  with  the  Land  next  Adjacent,  both 
upland  and  Meadow,  to  the  heads  of  the  Lots  with  my  Orchard  thereon 
&  to  the  River ;  &  the  other  end  or  side  is  bounded  by  an  easterly 
line  from  Bloomfield's  old  house  to  the  head  of  the  Lots  by  a  west  line 
to  the  green,  together  with  five  lots,  four  Acres  Apiece,  be  they  more  or 
Less;  viz..  Spencers  Lot,  Franklin  Lot,  Nath'l  Badgers  Lot,  &  two 
Lots  known  by  the  name  of  the  Moody  Lots.  .  .  .  Also  one  quarter  part 
of  the  Hides  and  Leather  that  do  belong  to  me  in  the  pit  or  elsewhere. 
.  .  .  To  my  son  Abner  Dole.  ...  I  give  him  one  Quarter  part  of  all 
the  hides  and  Leather  that  do  belong  to  me  in  the  pit  or  elsewhere. 

Most  of  the  land  conveyed  by  the  above  will  has  remained 
in  the  possession  of  the  family  down  to  the  present  time, 
and  is  now  owned  and  occupied  by  Nathaniel  Dole,  sixth  in 
descent  from  Richard  Dole. 

In  the  i^lan  of  the  old  town  a  street  is  laid  down  extendinj;- 
from  the  east  gutter,  so  called,  along  the  bank  of  the  ri\"er 
Parker  to  the  marsh  land  beyond.  This  street  was  doubtless 
intended  to  serve  as  a  highway  for  the  transportation  of  hay, 
fish,  and  other  products  of  the  land  and  sea  ;  but,  proxing 
inconxenient,  Thomas  Sihci",  who  owned  ten  acres  ot  marsh 
near  the  landing-place,  was  induced  to  grant  the  inhaliitants 
of  the  tow^n  liberty  to  pass  and  repass  o\er  his  private  projv 
erty.  In  the  Proprietors'  Records,  untler  date  of  .Sept.  6, 
1650,  is   the   following   entry:  — 


THE   SETTLE MEXT  AT   THE    LOWER    GREEX  19 

In  Consideration  of  Thomas  Silver,  his  receiving  a  parcell  of  Marsh 
about  an  acre,  be  it  more  or  less,  by  a  parcell  of  Marsh  he  bought  of 
Henry  Jaques  in  the  Great  fields  or  Marsh  lands  below  the  Lotts  at 
the  Old  Towne  almost  rounded  by  Creeks,  which  is  at  the  East  end 
of  the  marsh  that  was  formerly  Samuel  ScuUards  Marsh,  and  now 
Thomas  Silvers,  which  the  said  Thomas  Silvers  doth  by  these  presents 
engage  and  give  liberty  for  a  way  for  Carting  and  Sledding  through 
the  ten  acres  of  Marsh  that  he  bought,  which  was  Samuel  Scullards. 
for  all  those  that  have  neede  of  a  way  from  the  Marsh  that  is  called 
Jericho  or  thereabouts,  in  the  most  convenient  place  forever. 

AXTHOXY    SOMERBY. 

Some  years  later  a  new  way  was  laid  out  through  the  land 
of  Richard  Dole  "  which  is  next  to  the  lane  of  Thomas 
Silver,"  as  will  appear  from  the  lot  layers'  reports  and  other 
statements,  as  follows:  — 

Whereas,  upon  complaint  of  the  way  next  Newbury  River  into  the 
marshes  is  now  not  passable,  the  Townsmen,  taking  into  consideration, 
have  exchanged  the  said  Highway,  with  all  the  land  that  lies  common 
between  it  and  the  bank,  with  Richard  Dole,  for  a  more  convenient  way 
through  the  land  of  said  Richard  Dole,  which  is  next  to  the  lane  of 
Thomas  Silver :  and  so  to  go  cross  the  land  of  Richard  Dole,  until  it 
come  to  the  old  way,  as  it  hath  been  viewed,  and  as  it  shall  be  staked 
out.  and  seen  passable  by  the  men  appointed. 

The  breadth  of  the  way  in  the  Ploughlands  Shall  be  a  rod  and  a  half, 
and  afterwards  two  rods  all  along,  but,  if  it  be  fenced,  then  to  have  it 
half  a  rod  wider;   and  this  way  is  appointed  only  for  a  cart  or  sled. 

AXTHOXY    SOMERBY.     Clcfk. 

ffor  a  farther  explanation  and  confirmation  of  the  Grant  of  Richard 
Dole  heer  abovesaid,  whereas  ther  is  expressed  abovesaid  that  he 
should  have  all  the  land  that  lies  conion  between  the  highway  and  the 
Bank,  ther  is  now  Granted  all  the  land  that  lyes  in  conion  to  him  be- 
tween his  owne  land  and  The  River  all  a  Long  as  farr  as  the  way  goes 
in  the  upland  to  the  Marsh.  The  Towne  reserving  Liberty  to  any  Inhabi- 
tant in  the  Towne  for  fishing.  Fowling,  landing  goods  or  Hay,  Seizing 
Canooes,  or  Cutting  Creek  grass  on  the  Flats  or  the  Like.  And.  in  con- 
sideration of  resigning  up  into  the  Townes  two  acres  of  land  which  was 
Benjamin  Rolfes  in  the  aspen  swamp,  the  Towne  Granted  unto  Richard 
Dole  the  enlargement  of  the  old  way  unto  the  River,  and  also  all  the 
Marsh  that  Lyes  comon  adjoyning  to  the  way  next  John  Pike.  senV, 
his  marsh  below  Sergeants  being  about  an  acre  or  thereabout.  Provided 
the  said  Richard  Dole  give  satisfaction  to  Benjamin  Rolfe. 


20  OULD   XEIVBURY 

XoVEMIiKR    29"',    1654. 

Acording  to  tlie  Appoyntment  of  the  Towne  we  have  laid  out  the 
way  to  the  neck  anff  through  the  neck  to  the  marshes  on  the  east  side 
of  the  old  Towne.  as  followeth  :  — 

P>om  Merrimack  street  Downe  a  long  Richard  Dole's  land  at  that 
side  which  is  next  to  Thomas  Silver's  lands  and  jovning  unto  it  to  Ive 
one  Rod  and  an  halfe  while  it  is  unfenced.  and  to  be  two  rods  wide  if 
it  be  fenced.  And  so  to  run  from  thence  athwart  the  lower  end  of  the 
Lotts.  as  it  is  staked  out  unto  John  Emery's  lands,  uppon  the  neck  at 
the  Southwest  Corner,  from  thence  Eastward  by  the  North  of  Thomas 
Silver's  lands  a  rod  and  an  half  wide  while  it  is  unfenced.  and  two  Rod 
wide  if  fenced,  from  thence  South  Eastward  unto  the  north  side  of  John 
Pike's  meadow,  from  there  northward,  as  it  is  marked  with  Trees  and 
Stakes,  by  the  upper  ends  of  the  meadows  unto  Gyles  Cremwels,  alias 
Cromlans,  meadow,  all  Two  Rod  wide. 

Laid  out  by  us  Richard  Kxight.  John"  Pike.  John  Chew 

pr  AxTHOXV  SOMERBV.  Recorder. 

This  old  lane  or  way  is  still  in  use,  and  extends  from  near 
the  eastern  end  of  the  Lower  Green  to  the  old  landing-place 
on  the  river  Parker.  During  the  last  ten  or  fifteen  years  the 
erection  of  summer  cottages  in  that  vicinity  has  greatly  in- 
creased the  travel  over  this  ancient  thoroughfare. 

July  8,  1635,  the  General  Court  granted  liberty  "  to  M' 
Dumer  &  M""  Spencer  to  build  a  myll  &  weire  att  the  falls 
of  Newberr}^  to  enjo)-  the  said  m}'ll  &  weire  with  such  prex'i- 
lidges  of  grounds  &  tymber  as  is  expressed  in  an  agreem' 
betwixte  them  &  the  towne,  to  enjoy  to  them  &  their  heires 
forever."  This  mill  was  undoubtedly  the  first  one  erected 
within  the  territorial  limits  of  Newbury.  Governor  Winthrop, 
in  his  Histor)'  of  New  Kngland  (edition  of  1853,  volume  i, 
page  234),  says,  "a  water  mill  was  erected  at  Salem,  and  an- 
other at  Ipswich,  and  another  at  Newbury"  in  1636. 

In  the  town  records,  undei"  date  of  Aug.  6,  1638,  the  fol- 
lowing agreement  is  recorded  :  — 

It  is  agreed  w"'  Mr.  Ricliard  Dummer  of  Xewburv  by  tlie  psons 
whose  names  are  hereunto  subscribed  that  in  case  Mr.  Dummer  doe 
make  his  mill  fitt  to  grynd  Corne  «S:  doe  so  maintayne  the  same,  as  also 
doe  keei)c  a  man  to  attend   the  grynding  of  Corne,  then  they  for  their 


THE   SETTLEMENT  AT    THE   LOWER    GREEN  2i 

p's  will  send  thither  all  the  Corne  that  they  shall  have  ground  ;  &  doe 
likewise  pmise  that  all  the  rest  of  the  Toune  (if  it  lye  in  their  power  to 
p'cure  the  same)  shall  also  bring  their  Corne  from  tvme  to  tyme  to  be 
ground  at  the  said  mill ;  And  it  is  further  agreed  that  (the  'fore  men- 
c'oned  condic'on  being  observed  by  Mr.  Dummer)  there  shall  not  any 
other  mill  be  erected  w"Mn  the  said  Toune. 

On  the  margin  of  the  book  containing  the  above  record 
are  the  .signatures  of  Edward  Woodman,  Edward  Rawson, 
John  Knight,  and  Richard  Brown. 

Sept.  2,  1635,  Francis  Plumer  was  Hcensed  by  the  General 
Court  "to  keep  an  ordinary  in  Newbury"  ;  and  this  was,  un- 
doubtedly, the  first  tavern  opened  to  the  public  within  the 
limits  of  the  town. 

June  6,  1637,  John  Knight,  of  Newbury,  was  licensed  to  keep  an 
ordinary  and  give  intertainment  to  such  as  neede. —  Massachusetts 
Colony  Records,  volume  i,  page  199. 

The  total  area  of  marsh  and  upland  within  the  limits  of 
the  township  was  nearly  thirty  thousand  acres.  The  extreme 
length  of  the  town  from  the  mouth  of  the  Merrimack  River 
to  the  farthermost  western  boundary  was  nearly  thirteen 
miles  ;  and  the  width,  at  the  broadest  part,  was  about  six 
miles. 

In  the  first  division  of  this  land  among  the  settlers  every 
person  who  had  put  ^50  into  the  common  stock  was  granted 
two  hundred  acres  ;  and  every  person  who  had  transported 
himself  and  family  to  New  England  at  his  own  expense  was 
entitled  to  fifty  acres.  This  rule  was  strictly  adhered  to,  and 
was  evidently  intended  to  encourage  immigration  and  induce 
men  of  wealth  to  settle  in  Newbury.  •'  Such  adventurers  as 
send  over  any  person  are  to  have  fifty  acres  for  each  person 
whom  they  send."  In  conformity  to  this  agreement  the  town 
laid  out  to  Mr.  Richard  Dummer  1,080  acres,  to  Mr.  Henry 
Sewall  630  acres,  Mr.  Edward  Rawson  580  acres,  Mr.  John 
Clark  540  acres,  and  so,  in  proportion  to  the  amount  of 
money  each  had  invested,  down  to  the  house  lot  of  four  acres 
with  the  right  of  pasturage,  which  was  given  to  even  the 
poorest  settler. 


22  OULD    NEWBURY 

That  portion  of  the  land  in  the  southerl}'  ])art  of  the  town 
that  was  not  specially  laid  out  and  granted  to  individuals  was 
divided  into  several  sections,  known  as  "  the  Ox  Common," 
"Cow  Common,"  "Calf  Common,"  and  "Sheep  Range," 
while  the  whole  of  what  is  now  West  Newbury  w^as  called  the 
"  Upper  Woods." 

The  work  of  felling  forest  trees,  clearing  away  the  thick 
undergrowth,  and  preparing  the  soil,  in  favorable  localities,  for 
cultivation,  was  actively  undertaken  and  steadily  pursued  until 
the  annual  crops  of  barley,  wheat,  and  Indian  corn  grew  more 
and  more  abundant.  There  was  no  lack  of  plain  and  nourish- 
ing food.  The  woods  abounded  with  game.  The  supply  of 
beef,  mutton,  and  poultry,  was  more  than  equal  to  the  de- 
mand. Of  fish,  especially  .Hturgeon,  salmon,  codfish,  and 
bass,  there  was  plenty.  Home-brewed  beer  was  the  common 
beverage  until  the  growth  of  orchards  and  the  plentiful  sup- 
ply of  apples  led  to  the  introduction  of  cider  as  a  substitute. 
Tea  and  coffee,  and  even  potatoes,  were  unknown  in  New 
England  until  nearly  a  century  later. 

Though  living  near  the  ocean,  there  were  but  two  persons 
among  the  original  settlers  who  were  acquainted  with  nauti- 
cal affairs.  One  was  Mr.  Thomas  Milward,  who  owned  a 
shallop,  and  is  styled  "mariner"  in  the  records;  and  the 
other  was  Captain  John  Cutting,  "shipmaster."  Aquila 
Chase  was  induced  in  1646  to  remove  from  Hampton  to 
Newbury  by  a  vote  of  the  proprietors,  which  reads  as  ft)llows  : 

Granted  to  Aquila  Chase,  anno  1646,  four  acres  of  land  at  the  new 
towne  for  a  house-lott,  and  six  acres  of  upland  for  a  planting  lott,  where 
it  is  to  he  had,  and  six  acres  of  Marsh,  where  it  is  to  be  had  also,  on 
condition  that  he  do  goe  to  sea  and  do  service  in  the  towne  with  a  boate 
for  four  years. 

There  is  a  tradition,  says  Coffin,  in  his  History  of  Newbury, 
that  Aquila  Chase  was  the  first  i)crs()n  who  brought  a  \essel 
over  the  bar  at  the  mouth  of  the  Merrimack  River.  He  was 
undoubtedly  a  good  j^lot  as  well  as  an  experienced  fisherman. 

The  first  white  child  born  in  Newbury  was  Mary  Brown, 
(laughter   of    Thomas    Brown.       .She    niaii'icd    Peter   (lodfrey 


THE   SETTLEMENT  AT   THE    LOWER    GREEX  23 

May  13,  1656,  and  died  April  16,  1716,  in  the  eighty-first 
year  of  her  age.  Josliua  Woodman,  son  of  Edward  Wood- 
man, was  the  first  white  male  child  born  within  the  same 
territorial  limits.  He  died  May  30,  1703,  aged  sixty-seven, 
and  was  bnried  at  Byfield. 

Other  births  recorded  in  the  original  book  of  records 
are :  — 

Shubael  Dumer,  sonne  of  Mr.  Uumer,  borne  the  17"^  day  of  Feb- 
ruary. 1635-6. 

Elizabeth  Holt,  ye  daughter  of  Nicholas  Holt,  husbandman,  was 
borne  the  30"^  March,  1636. 

The  names  of  those  who  died  at  this  early  date  were  not 
recorded,  or,  if  recorded,  have  since  been  lost  or  destroyed. 
Previous  to  the  year  1641  the  only  entries  are, — 

Thomas  Cromlome  dyed  1635;  ye  wife  of  Thomas  Cromlome,  dyed 
1635: 

and  these  entries  were  evidently  not  made  at  the  time,  but 
interpolated   some   years   later. 

The  first  death  where  the  name  and  date  are  given  in  full 
is  that  of  John  Kent,  son  of  John  Kent,  who  "  dyed  ye  7"' 
of  February,  1641."  After  this  date  evidently  more  care 
was  bestowed  upon  the  records,  and  the  entries  are  much 
more  frequent  ;  but  still  for  many  subsequent  years  they  are 
very  defective  and  incomplete. 

A  short  distance  from  the  Lower  Green,  and  near  the 
travelled  highway  that  leads  to  the  bridge  over  the  river 
Parker,  is  the  ancient  burial-ground  where  those  who  died 
during  the  first  few  years  of  the  settlement  were  buried. 
Many  of  the  graves  are  marked  by  stones  with  inscriptions, 
but  these  tablets  are  nearly  all  of  them  lying  flat  on  the 
ground  and  covered  with  the  o\'ergrowing  turf.  E\'idently, 
the  earliest  burials  were  not  appropriately  marked  at  the  time, 
and  cannot  now  be  identified.  The  oldest  inscription  that 
can    be  deciphered    reads  as  follows  :  — 


24  OULD   XEWBUKY 

HERE  LVES  y^ 
BODY  OF  WILLAM 
DOLE  AGED  58 
\'  E  A  R  S  DIED 
J  A  X  i<  V  y  '•  29'  '^ 
1717-8. 

A  petition  to  the  General  Court,  to  be  found  in  the  Mas- 
sachusetts Archives,  volume  10,  pages  27  to  30,  signed  by 
Edmund  Greenleaf,  Daniel  Thurston,  Stephen  Kent,  and 
John  Poore,  remonstrating  against  the  proposed  remoxal  of 
the  meeting-house  to  the  Upper  Green,  has  this  significant 
sentence  :  — ■ 

The  high  way,  in  part,  that  served  both  town  and  country,  and  the 
very  places  assigned  to  bury  the  dead,  and  where  many  dead  bodys  lye, 
are  sold  away,  as  wee  are  informed,  though  all  things  are  secretly 
carried. 

In  the  town  records,  under  date  of  May  18,  1647,  there 
is  a  memorandum  to  the  effect  that  John  Emery  for  ^^3 
was  granted  "  that  parcell  of  land  called  the  greene,  about 
three  akers,  being  more  or  lesse,  bounded  by  the  half  acre 
lotts  on  the  west,  the  hye  way  on  the  South  east  and  his 
own  land  on  the  north,  being  in  a  triangle,  onl}-  the  twenty 
rods  [is]  reserved  in  said  land  for  a  burying  place,  as  it  is 
bounded  with  stakes  with  a  way  to  it  from  the  Street." 

This  "parcell  of  land"  is  now  a  cultivated  field  owned  by 
Mrs.  Joseph  Ilsley,  and  is  still  known  as  the  Emery  lot.  It 
is  probable  that  the  "  burying  place,"  specially  rcser\-ed  in  the 
above  grant,  was  the  first  one  that  was  laid  out  and  set  apart 
for  that  pin"pose  within  the  limits  of  "  Ould  Xewbury." 


THE  SPENCER-PIERCE   HOUSE. 


There  is  considerable  doubt  and  uncertainty  in  regard  to 
the  date  when  this  ancient  stone  house  was  built.  Some 
authorities  claim  that  it  was  erected  by  John  Spencer  between 
the  years  1635  and  1637,  and  others  assert  that  it  was  built 
for  his  nephew,  John  Spencer,  Jr.,  between  1640  and  1650; 
and  still  others  are  of  the  opinion  that  its  first  owner  and 
occupant  was  Daniel  Pierce,  who  bought  the  farm  in  165 1. 
Careful  examination  of  the  records  at  Salem,  made  with  spe- 
cial reference  to  the  preparation  of  this  sketch,  does  not 
furnish  sufficient  evidence  to  determine  the  c[uestion  beyond 
a  reasonable  doubt  ;  but  it  has  led  to  the  discovery  of  some 
important  facts,  now  for  the  first  time  published,  that  may  be 
of  assistance  in  arriving  at  the  correct  conclusion.  It  would 
be  impossible  to  give  in  detail  all  the  deeds,  wills,  and  other 
legal  instruments  that  have  been  consulted,  without  extending 
this  sketch  beyond  its  proper  limits  ;  and  therefore  only  a 
brief  outline  of  these  papers  will  be  inserted  here,  with  such 
cjuotations  and  comments  as  will  enable  the  reader  to  follow 
the  changes  that  have  taken  place  in  the  ownership  of  this 
property  from  1635  to  the  present  time. 

Among  the  first  settlers  who  landed  at  Parker  River  was 
Mr.  John  Spencer.  He  came  to  New  England  in  the  ship 
"  Mary  and  John  "  in  company  with  Thomas  Parker,  James 
Noyes,  Henry  Short,  John  Bartlett,  and  others,  and  was  at 
Ipswich  in  1634,  where  he  was  made  freeman  and  chosen 
deputy  to  the  General  Court.  He  came  to  Newbury  in  1635  ; 
and  his  name  appears  on  the  first  page  of  the  Proprietors' 
Records  as  the  grantee  of  a  house  lot  "next  the  great  river," 
as  may  be  seen  by  reference  to  the  plan  of  the  settlement  at 
the  Lower  Green  on  page   14  of  this  book.      In  1636,  at  the 


THE   SPENCER-PIERCE   HOUSE  27 

May,  September,  and  December  sessions  of  the  General 
Court,  he  represented  the  town  of  Newbur}',  and  was  ap- 
pointed captain  of  one  of  the  militia  companies  organized  for 
the  defence  of  the  colony. 

In  the  Registry  of  Deeds  at  Salem,  Mass.  (Ipswich  Series), 
book  I,  page  183,  there  is 

A  Transcript  of  the  lands  of  Mr.  John  Spenser,  of  Newbury,  as  by 
the  severall  graunts  doe  appeare,  as  theye  were  graunted  by  the  towne 
of  Newbury,  &  recorded  in  the  towne  booke  of  Newbury. 

There  was  graunted  by  the  towne  of  Newbury  unto  Mr.  John  Spenser, 
gent,  of  Newbury,  in  y  yeare  1635,  one  house  lott  of  foure  acres,  bee  it 
more  or  lesse,  as  it  was  layed  out  by  the  appointed  lott  layers,  in  bredth 
eight  rods,  in  length  four  skore  rod,  bounded  by  y  street  next  the 
greate  river  on  the  south,  a  lott  of  William  Francklings  on  y  north,  a 
lott  of  William  Seargents  on  y*^  east,  &  Merrimack  Streete  on  y^  west. 
Alsoe  a  farme  lotte  of  foure  hundred  acres  of  upland  &  meadow,  be  it 
more  or  lesse,  bounded  by  Mr.  Woodbridge  on  the  north,  Mr.  Parker 
on  the  south,  y''  street  of  eight  rodds  in  bredth  on  the  west,  next  Merri- 
mack river  on  the  east  and  the  comon  on  the  west  end,  one  hundred  & 
fifty  acres  whereof,  be  it  more  or  less,  lyeth  on  the  left  hand  of  Merri- 
mac  ridge,  the  same  in  bredth  as  that  on  y  right  hand  of  the  ridge,  & 
in  length  Six  score  rodds. 

And  thirty  acres  of  salt  marsh  beyond  Pyne  Island,  and  three  acres 
of  upland,  be  it  more  or  less,  on  the  neck  over  the  greate  river. 

Edward  Rawsox. 
William  Titcome. 
Edward  Woodman. 
Nicholas   Noves. 
vera  copia. 

p.  AXTHOXV    SUMERBY, 

Recorder  for  y  towne  of  A^eivbury. 

It  is  probable  that  the  house  lot  referred  to  above  was 
sold  or  exchanged  for  other  property  at  a  very  early  date,  and 
that  Spencer  occupied  it  only  temporarily.  The  farm  of  four 
hundred  acres  remained  in  his  possession  until  his  death, 
which  occurred  ten  or  twelve  years  later. 

In  1637,  John  Spencer  was  condemned  and  disarmed,  with 
sixty  other  followers  of  Mrs.  Anne  Hutchinson  and  the  Rev. 
John  Wlieelwright,  for  holding  erroneous  religious  opinions  ; 
and  August    i    of  that  year  he  made  a  will,  and   soon  after, 


28  OULD  NEWBURY 

probably,  went  to  Kngland,*  where  he  died,  unmarried,  about 
1648.  This  will  does  not  mention  house  or  buildings  of  any 
kind,  neither  does  it  give  the  age  of  the  nephew  (John 
Spencer,  Jr.)  to  whom  all  the  lands  and  goods  belonging  to 
the  testator  in  New  England  are  bequeathed.  It  is  exident 
from  a  careful  perusal  of  the  document,  however,  that  this 
nephew  was  a  mere  youth  at  that  time,  receiving  dail}'  in- 
struction from  the  Rev.  John  Cotton,  of  Boston,  where  he 
])robably  resided  during  his  minorit}'.  The  full  text  of  this 
will  is  gi\-en  in  order  that  all  the  important  facts  may  have 
their  proper  weight  and  influence.  The  will  was  proved  at 
Salem,  March  29,  1649,  and  is  recorded  in  the  Registry  of 
Deeds  (Ipswich  Series),  book  i,  page  181. 

JoHX  Spexsp:r"s  Will. 

Know  all  men  by  these  pre.sents  that,  if  ("lOd  be  pleased  to  call  me 
out  of  this  life  in  this  single  condition,  it  is  my  full  purpose  and  will 
that  John  .Spenser  shall  inheritt  all  my  lands  &  goods  which  God  hath 
given  unto  me  in  this  Country  of  New  England,  to  pay  out  of  the  same 
within  three  years  after  my  discease  to  his  reverent  instructor  in  Christ, 
Mr.  Cotton,  ten  pounds,  to  every  house  hould  servant,  which  is  so  at 
the  time  of  my  discease,  five  pounds  a  peece,  to  the  children  of  my 
cosen  Ann  Knight  of  Newbery  five  pounds  a  peece,  and  to  herself  five 
pound;  and  unto  every  child  of  my  brother  Thomas  Spenser  twenty 
pounds  a  peece:  to  Thomas  Theacher  five  pounds:  and  to  mine  honored 
friend  Mr.  Dane.  Mr.  Richard  Dumer.  Mr.  Nicholas  Eston.  .Mr.  Foster 
of  Ipswich,  and  Goodman  Motte  of  Hingham  doe  I  comitte  the  over- 
sight lS:  execution  of  this  my  will  &  testament,  and  doe  comend  the  said 
John  Spenser,  my  nephew,  together  with  his  estate  hereby  given  him.  to 
be  managed  &  ordered  for  his  good.  >.S:  himselfe  for  his  educatiim  to  be 
by  their  care  in  y''  knowledge  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  that  if 
money  be  not  in  their  hands  to  defray  the  severall  legacies  heere  be- 
(jueathed,  that  then  they  take  as  many  cowes  or  heiffers  out  of  the 
Stock,  and  share  them  betweene  them  at  twenty  j^ounds  the  l)east.  till 
every  portion  be  sattisfied:  and  my  will  is  that  mine  honoured  and  lov- 
ing friends  should,  in  their  accompt  unto  mine  heire,  make  abatement 
for  all  their  paines  and  charges  in  the  following  any  business  therein 
contayned,  whome  I  desire  the  Lord  to  blesse,  that  the  worke  may 
prosper  in  theire  hands.  Dated  this  first  of  the  si.xt  month.  iCi3  7-  ;uid 
signed  with  mine  owne  hand.  i     ,   Si'KNCKR 

*  In  a  suit  brought  by  .Antliony  Sonierby,  as  his  attorney,  in  the  year  i'  ^S,  Spencer  is  described 
as  living  in  London.     See  Ipswich  Court  Kiles,  book  2S,  jiage  i. 


THK    SPKXCICR-PIERCE    HOUSE  29 

Mv  will  and  intent  is.  that  if  John  Spenser  my  nephew,  should  dye 
without  heires  of  his  body  lawfully  begotten,  that  then  my  brother 
Thomas  Spencer  &  his  children  shall  share  the  same,  a  sonne  to  have 
three  times  as  a  daughter,  and,  if  tliey  should  fail  by  death,  that  then 
the  children  of  my  brother  Nicholas  Kidwel,  &  the  children  of  my  sister 
Rachell  Kidwel,  to  them  halfe  theirof,  and  the  next  of  my  blood  & 
whole  kindred  that  shall  first  come  over  to  reside  in  this  country  to 
have  the  other  halfe:  moreover  I  give  to  my  Cosen  (Jardner's  children 
twentie  Shillings  the  peece. 

pr.  Jo  :   Spexcer. 
Witnesse. 

Robert  Jeoffrevs 
Thomas  Thacher. 

To  the  above  is  added  the  following  statement  :  — 

Left  at  Newbury  i  [  cows.  3  heyfers,  4  oxens,  i  steere.  4  cow  calves, 
I  bull.  7  steere  calves,  i  mare.  3  mare  colts,  beside  swine  &  poultry, 
corne,  cloaths,  cloathes  apparell,  household  stuffe. 

In  the  records  of  the  Ipswich  court  is  the  following  state- 
ment in  relation  to  the  presentation  of  this  will  :  — 

The  29*  of  March.  1649.  there  was  a  will  delivered  into  court  by 
IVI''  Richard  Dumar.  being  the  will  and  testament  of  M'  John  Spencer 
Heretofore  of  Newbery,  bearing  date  the  first  of  the  sixt  month.  1637, 
wittnesed  by  Robert  Jeofferyes  &  Thomas  Thacher. 

M''  Rich  Dumar  sworne  testified  the  will  above  mentioned  was  de- 
livered into  his  hands  before  M''  Spencers  goeing  to  England, 

It  is  not  reasonable,  in  view  of  these  facts,  to  suppose  that 
the  old  stone  house  now  standing  on  this  farm  was  built 
during  the   life   of  John   Spencer,    Sr. 

When  the  younger  Spencer  came  into  possession  of  the 
property  in  1649,  he  could  not  have  been  over  twenty-one 
or  twenty-two  years  of  age.  He  was  unmarried.  He  com- 
menced to  sell  the  land  in  small  lots  of  eight,  ten,  and  thirty 
acres  each,  and  finall)",  Nov.  26,  165 1,  he  con\'e}'ed  the 
remainder,  consisting  of  a  farm  of  three  hundred  acres,  to  his 
uncle  Daniel  Pierce. 

At  this  date  there  were  "  housings,  barnes,  cow  houses, 
orchards,    gardens,    and   fences    thereunto    belonging "  ;    but, 


30  OULD    XEIVIU'RY 

inasmuch  as  Thomas  Coleman  had  taken  a  lease  of  the  farm 
some  )ears  i)reviously,  it  is  probable  that  stock-raisin<;"  was 
carried  on  there,  and  "housings  and  barnes  "  were  })ro\ided 
as  shelter  for  cattle.  Dec.  22,  1645,  the  town  records  state 
that,  "Thomas  Coleman  having  taken  a  farme  so  that  he 
cannot  attend  to  lay  out  lotts,  John  Pemberton  was  appointed 
lott  layer  in  his  roome."  This  statement  undoubtedly  refers 
to  a  lease  of  this  property  made  by  Richard  Dummer  and 
others,  as  trustees,  under  the  will  of  John  Spencer,  Sr.  The 
lease  had  two  years  to  run  from  Nov.  26,  165  I,  as  stated  in 
the  conveyance  of  the  farm  from  John  Spencer,  Jr.,  to 
Daniel    Pierce. 

The  full  te.xt  of  the  deed,  as  recorded  at  Salem  (Ipswich 
Series),  book  i,  page  285,  is  as  follows  :  — 

Witnes.  by  these  presents,  that  John  Spenser,  of  Newbury,  in  the 
countie  of  Essex,  gent,  for  &  in  consideration  of  five  hundred  pounds  in 
hand  paid  &  by  the  said  John  Spenser  received,  have  infeoffed.  bar- 
gained &  sold,  &  by  these  presents  do  infeofe,  bargaine  &  sell,  unto 
Daniel  Pierce  of  the  said  towne  &  county,  smith,  all  that  his  farme  witli 
upland  &  meadow,  containing  about  three  hundred  acres,  be  it  more  or 
less,  lying  in  Newi)ury.  on  the  east  side  of  Merrimack  ridge,  bounded 
with  the  land  of  Mr.  Thomas  Parker  &  Mr.  John  Woodbridge  on  the 
south,  and  the  said  Mr.  Woodbridge's  farm  on  the  north,  &  a  creke  that 
comes  out  of  Merrimack  river  on  the  east.  >.S:  the  highway  on  Merri- 
macke  ridge  on  the  west,  with  all  &  singuler  profitts,  comons.  privilidges 
&  appurtenances  thereunto  belonging :  to  have,  hold  >.\;  quietly  to  pos- 
sess &  enjoye  the  said  farme,  both  meadows  and  upland,  all  housing, 
barnes,  cow-houses,  orchard,  garden  &  fences  thereunto  belonging,  to 
the  said  Daniel  Pierce,  his  heires  and  assignes  forever;  and  the  sd  Jolm 
Spencer  for  him  tS:  his  heires  the  sd  farme.  t!v;c.,  unto  the  said  Daniel  vS: 
his  heires  i!v  assignes,  will  warrant  &  defend,  provided  tliat.  if  the  said 
John  Spenser  shall  desire  to  have  the  sd  farm  again,  within  one  seaven 
yeare  after  this  date,  that  then  the  said  Daniel  Pierce  shall  resigne  up 
the  said  farme  againe  unto  the  saitl  John  .Spencer  conditional! v.  the 
said  John  Spenser  pay  backe  againe  the  said  price  that  he  received  for 
it,  and  such  charges  as  may  be  thought  convenient,  that  the  said  Daniell 
Pierce  shall  be  at  alwut  improvement,  unto  y*^  said  Daniell  I'ierce.  his 
heires  <S:  a.ssignes.  and  that  he,  the  said  Jolm  Spenser,  come  <.K:  live  ujion 
it  himselfe,  cS;  alsoe  the  yearely  rents  during  tlie  time  that  Thomas  Col- 
man  hath  in  the  farm  yet  to  come,  which  is  two  yeares,  being  reserved 
iS:  excepted  unto  the  use  of  the  said  John  Spenser,  his  iieires,  executors  <S: 


THE   SFENCER-FIERCE   HOUSE  31 

assignes.  And  alsoe  foure  acres  of  upland  on  the  north  side  of  the  said 
farme  next  to  the  river,  l)eing  reserved  &  excepted  for  the  use  of  Mr. 
William  Thomas,  of  Newbury,  his  heires  and  assignes. 

In  testimony  hereof  the  above-named  John  Spenser  have  set  to  his 
hand  &  scale,  the  twenty  sixt  of  November,  in  y''  yeare  one  thousand, 
six  hundred  and  fifty-one. 

Jxo.  Spenser 

.Signed,  sealed  «S;  del'd  in  the  presence  of  us  «!!v:  a  Seale 

WlLLI.^.M    TH().M.A.S 

AXTHOXV    So:\iERHV 

This  deed  was  acknowledged  by  y^'  sd  John  Spenser,  5th  day  of  the 
loth  month.  Anno  :    I)om  :    1651.  before  me 

S.A.MUEL    SVMOXD.S. 

It  i.s  pos.sible  that  young  Spencer  may  have  commenced 
the  construction  of  a  stone  house  soon  after  the  farm  came 
into  his  possession  ;  but,  finding  the  total  cost  would  exceed 
the  amount  of  ready  money  at  his  disposal,  he  reluctantly 
sold  the  property  to  his  uncle  Daniel  Pierce,  and  inserted 
in  the  deed  a  clause  providing  that  he  should  ha\'e  the  farm 
back  again  at  an)-  time  within  seven  years  upon  condition 
that  he  return  and  live  upon  it  and  pay  back  the  purchase 
money,  with  such  additional  charges  as  might  be  necessary 
to  meet  the  expenses  incurred  during  the  intervening  time. 
In  the  two  years  —  from  1649,  w^hen  the  will  was  proved,  to 
165 1,  when  the  deed  was  signed  —  while  he  was  owner  of 
the  property,  he  may  have  laid  the  foundation  and  partially 
completed  the  building  now  standing  there.  But  it  must  be 
remembered  that  young  Spencer  was  unmarried,  and  there- 
fore could  afford  to  await  the  expiration  of  the  lease  before 
building  a  large  and  costly  house  on  land  that  was,  tem- 
porarily at  least,  beyond  his  control. 

After  disposing  of  this  property,  he  evidently  went  to  Eng- 
land, and  thence  to  Hayti  and  Jamaica,  returning  to  this 
country  several  years  later,  and,  finally,  settling  at  Newport, 
R.I.  There  is  no  evidence  that  he  ever  came  to  Newbury 
again,  and  only  a  few  incidental  circumstances  that  seem  to 
indicate  that  he,  or  some  other  person  of  the  same  name,  was 
in  Rhode  Island  about  the  year  1661. 


32  Ol'LD    XEWBURY 

Coffin,  in  his  History  of  Xewbury.  on  i:)ag"c  397,  g"i\es  the 
deposition  of  Anthony  Sonierby,  which  contains  a  statement 
to  the  effect  that  Spencer  conveyed  the  farm  to  Pierce  by 
means  of  "turfe  and  twigge."  This  method  of  transferring 
real  estate  was  not  micommon  in  luigland  at  that  time.  The 
testimony  is  as  follows  :  — 

This  deponent  saith  that  about  the  yeares  1651  or  fifty-two  I  was  at 
the  farm  y'  Mr.  John  Spencer  sold  to  Mr.  Daniell  Peirce  in  Xewburv, 
and  Mr.  Spencer  and  "six.  Peirce  with  myselfe  and  another.  I  suppose  it 
was  Mr.  William  Thomas,  and.  as  we  were  going  through  the  land  of  ye 
said  farme,  Mr.  Pierce  said  to  Mr.  Spencer  you  promised  to  give  me 
possession  by  turfe  and  twigge.  Mr.  -Spencer  said  soe  I  will,  if  you 
please  to  cutt  a  turff  and  twigge.  and  Mr.  Pierce  did  cut  off  a  twigge  off 
a  tree,  and  cutt  up  a  turfe,  and  Mr.  Spencer  tooke  the  twigge  and  stuck 
it  into  the  turff.  and  bid  us  beare  witness  that  he  gave  Mr.  Pierce  pos- 
session therebv  of  the  house  and  land  and  ffarme  that  he  had  bought  of 
him.  and  gave  the  turff  and  twigge  to  .Mr.  Pierce  and   further  saith  not. 

Taken  upon  oath  10  Jan.  1679. 

Before  me 

John   Woouukiixje.  Cojiuitissioiicr. 


The  above  deposition  is  recorded  in  the  Registry  of  Deeds, 
Salem    (Ipswich  Series),  book  4,  page  133. 

If  conveyance  was  made  b)'  turf  and  twig  as  therein  stated, 
still  the  transfer  was  supplemented  b\'  a  deed  in  the  usual 
form,  duly  signed  and  recorded.  The  full  text  of  that  'Aki^A 
has  already  been  gi\"en. 

The  disco\-ery  of  additional  testimony  indicates  that  some 
question  of  title  was  in  disjnite  when  Antht)ny  Somerby's 
deposition  was  taken  ;  and  this  new  evidence  will  be  pre- 
sented in  connection  with  a  later  con\e\ance,  to  which  it 
more  properly  belongs. 

Daniel  Pierce,  uncle  to  John  .Spencer.  Jr..  was  the  ancestor 
of  the  Pierce  family  in  this  country.  He  came  in  tlie  ship 
"  ICli/.abeth  "  from  Ipswich,  county  of  .Suffoll<,  l'"ngland,  in 
1634,  aged  twenty-three  )ears,  and  settled  in  W'atertown, 
Alass.,  of  which  he  was  one  of  the  proprietors,  in  j-'ebruary, 
1636-7.     He  was  matle  a  freeman  Ala)-  2,  1638.  antl  rcmo\ed 


77//:'    SPENCEK-PIEKCE   HOUSE  2il 

to  Newbury  the  same  year.      His   children   b}'   his   first   wife, 
Sarah,  were  :  — 

Daniel,  Ijorn  May  15,  1638,  in  Watertown. 
Joshua,  born  May  15,  1642.  in  Newbury. 
Martha,  born  Feb.  14,  1648-9,  in  Newbury. 

His  wife  died  July  17,  1654;  and  Dec.  26,  1654,  he 
married  Mrs.  Ann  Milward,  widow  of  Thomas  Milward, 
"mariner."  At  the  close  of  1665  he  went  with  several 
other  Newbury  men  to  a  township  in  New  Jersey,  returning 
to  Newbury  as  early  as  1670.  He  was  a  friend  and  sup- 
porter of  the  Rev.  Thomas  Parker  in  the  bitter  and  protracted 
church  controversy  that  disturbed  the  peace  and  quiet  of  the 
town  for  many  years.  Having  sold  his  lands  in  New  Jersey, 
it  is  supposed  that  he  built  the  stone  house  about  this  time. 
He  died  Nov.  27,  1677.  His  will,  dated  Nov.  12,  1677,  was 
proved  March  26,  1678.  He  evidently  valued  the  place 
highly,  and  intended,  if  possible,  to  keep  it  in  the  possession 
of  his  family,  as  is  evident  from  the  provisions  of  his  will, 
which  give  to  his  son,  Daniel  Pierce,  "all  my  housing  and 
lands  that  are  undisposed  of,  &  appoint  him  my  true  &  Law- 
full  heir  of  all  &  also  my  sole  executor  of  this  my  last  will  & 
testament,  desiring  him  to  Doe  for  his  brother  Joshua  Pierce's 
children  as  he  shall  see  in  his  Discretion  meet  to  be  Dt)ne  to 
them."     The  will  also  provides  that, 

Whereas  upon  my  marriage  agreement  with  Anne.  m_\-  wife,  she 
was  to  have  twenty  pounds  a  year  during  her  natural!  life,  I  appoint 
my  said  executor,  that  in  all  conditions  she  shall  be  in,  that  he  provide 
all  proper  necessaries  for  her  that  she  shall  stand  in  need  of,  and  that 
she  shall  enjoy  her  former  libertyes  in  the  house  During  her  life. 

And  whereas  I  have  given  my  housing  and  Lands  as  above  said  unto 
my  said  son,  that  is  the  farme  I  now  dwell  upon,  I  give  it  unto  my  heir, 
and  his  heirs,  so  that  it  shall  never  be  sold  or  any  part  divided  from  the 
Lawful!  heire  male  upon  forfeiture  of  all  the  said  premises  unto  the 
next  heire  male  of  the  same  name  and  Icindred. 

There  is  no  farther  reference  to  the  house  in  this  will,  and 
the  description  is  not  sufficiently  minute  to  enable  any  one  at 


34  OULD   NKIVBL'RY 

this  date  to  say  positixx-ly  that  the  house  then  staiuHnj;-  on 
the  farm  was  built  of  brick  and  stone. 

Daniel  Pierce,  Jr.,  as  executor  of  the  will,  settled  the  estate 
in  due  season,  and  took  c|uiet  possession  of  the  house  and 
farm. 

About  this  time  a  controversy  seems  to  have  arisen  in  re- 
gard to  the  title  to  the  property  ;  and  the  following  deposi- 
tions were  placed  on  record  in  the  Registry  of  Deeds  at 
Salem  (Ipswich  Series),  book  4,  page  312  :  — 

The  deposition  of  John  Webster,  aged  47  years,  testifieth  upon  oath, 
I,  being  formerly  an  apprentice  with  Daniel  Pearce.  ffather  to  the  now 
Capt.  Daniel  Pearce,  In  the  time  of  my  service,  in  the  sumer.  in  the 
yeare  one  thousand  six  hundred  fiftye  one,  my  master  Pearce  bought  the 
land  that  Capt.  Vinson  now  dwells  upon  ;  and  I  farther  testihe  that  in 
the  latter  end  of  the  winter  ffollowing  my  master  Pearce  removed  his 
ffamaly,  cattell,  and  goods  to  the  land  aforesayd,  and  lived  upon  it  as 
his  owne  land,  both  himselfe  and  his  [ •]  to  this  time. 

Sworne  in  Court  held  at  Ipswich  the  30"'  of  March.  1680. 

Attest  Ror.KKT   Lord.  Clerc. 

The  deposition  of  John  Emery,  Senior,  aged  about  52  years.  This 
deponent  saith  that  about  the  latter  end  of  the  year  1651  or  at  the  h^- 
ginning  of  the  yeare  1652  Mr.  Daniell  Pierce,  senior,  went  to  live  at  the 
ffarm.  and  possessed  it  during  his  life,  and  his  son  after  him  to  this  time, 
without  any  molestation  as  his  owne  land.  This  farme  spo]<en  off  is  the 
farme  that  Capt.  Daniell  Pearce  now  liveth  upon. 

.Sworn  in  court  held  at  Ipswich  the  30"'  of  March,  1680. 

Attest  Rop.KRT    Lord.  Clcrkc. 

The  testimony  of  Richard  Knight,  aged  78  vears  or  thereabouts.  Tes- 
tifieth &  saith  that  I,  being  lott  layer  with  Thomas  Colman.  M'"  John 
-Spencer,  Junior,  called  me  to  lay  out  his  grant  of  a  150  acres  of  upland 
wiiich  was  granted  September  tlic  4"'  ir)38.  w^'''  l)y  a  Towne  order  we 
wearc  i)ound  so  to  do  at  three  days  warning.  And  acc(u-dinglv  Tiiomas 
Cohiian  \-  I  did  lay  out  tlie  150  acres  of  upland  on  bdtii  s\(les  .Merri- 
mack ridg  to  .M'"  John  .Spencer  in  the  yeare  164S  or  at  the  l)egining  of 
the  yeare  1649,  which  land  Ives  on  the  south  svde  of  .Mr.  John  Wood- 
bridges  lf,u-m  >.\:    is   that  which    Daniell    I'carce  do  now  Dwell  upon,  and 


THK   SPENCER-PIERCE   HOUSE  35 

Henrv  Jaques.  and   Richard   Pettengell  &  Joseph   Domer  also  do  dwell 

upon  it. 

p  me  Richard   Knight. 

Sworn  in  Court  held  at  Ipswich  the  3o">  of  March,  1680. 

Attest  Robert   Lord.  Clcrc. 

From  these  depositions  it  appears  that  at  least  a  portion  of 
the  farm  granted  to  John  Spencer,  Sr.,  by  the  town  of  New- 
bury was  not  laid  out  until  after  his  decease,  and  that  John 
Spencer,  Jr.,  found  it  necessary  to  have  this  done  before  he 
could  give  a  legal  conveyance  of  the  land  to  his  uncle. 

Daniel  Pierce,  Jr.,  or  Colonel  Daniel  Pierce,  as  he  was 
usually  called,  was  prominent  in  civil,  ecclesiastical,  and  mili- 
tary affairs.  He  married  Dec.  5,  1660,  Elizabeth,  daughter 
of  Thomas  and.  Ann  Milward.  Six  years  before,  Daniel 
Pierce,  the  elder,  had  married  Elizabeth's  mother,  who  was 
then  a  widow. 

Colonel  Daniel  Pierce  died  April  22,  1704.  His  will,  dated 
Aug.  12,  1 701,  was  proved  May  8,  1704.  It  gives  to  his 
wife  "  fourteen  pounds  a  year  yearly  during  her  natural  life, 
and  the  Parlor  in  the  Stone  house,  with  as  many  pertitions 
made  in  it  as  she  shall  see  cause  to  have,  also  a  passidge  throw 
the  kitchen  for  her  more  convenient  going  to  the  well  "  ;  to  his 
son,  Joshua  Pierce,  "  my  now  dwelling  house  with  the  malt 
house  and  out  housings,  &c.,  &c."  ;  to  his  son,  Thomas  Pierce, 
"  that  dwelling  house  which  I  built  for  him,  situate  and  being 
upon  that  my  land  that  the  malt  house  do  stand  upon  "  ;  to 
his  oldest  surviving  son,  Benjamin,  "the  ffarm  y'  my  Honoured 
ffather  (deceased)  bought  of  Mr.  John  Spencer,  of  wch  he 
shall  not  sell  any  part.  .  .  .  The  houseing  and  lands  as  is 
hereby  given  unto  my  said  son  Benjamin  Peirce,  and  his  heirs 
particularly  expressed,  shall  be  and  Remain  unto  my  said  son 
Benjamin  Pierce  and  his  heirs  male  of  his  body  lawfully 
begotten,  and  so  to  the  male  heirs  of  my  son  Benjamin 
Pierces  male  heirs,  bodyes  lawfully  begotten,  forever ;  .  .  . 
and  farther  my  will  is  that  it  shall  not  be  in  the  power  of  the 
above  mentioned  heirs  to  sell  or  diminish  any  part  or  parcell 
of  the  said   Houses  or  lands   which   is   hereby  entailed  to  the 


36  OCLD   NEIVBURY 

heirs  male  as  is  abo\"e  expressed,  but  that  the  same  and  e\ery 
part  and  parcel!  thereof  shall  be  and  remaine  to  the  heirs  as 
is  abc)\-e  said,  to  have  and  to  hold  to  them  and  the  heirs 
male  of  their  bodyes  lawfully  begotten  as  abo\e  said  forever." 
Benjamin  Pierce  was  executor  of  his  father's  will.  He 
married  L\-dia  h'rost,  daughter  of  Charles  h'rost,  of  Kittery, 
Me.  He  died  at  the  old  stone  mansion,  and  was  buried  in  the 
graveyard  near  the  First  Parish  Meeting-house.  Upon  the 
tablet  that  marked  his  grave  was  the  following  inscription  :  — 

Here  Ly.s  ye  body  of  Benjamin  Pierce,  Esqr..  who  died  Mav  ve  19"' 
171 1,  aged  42  years  and  three  months. 

Pillar  i'  th'  State  he  was, 

Bid  fair  still 

At  greater  things. 

To  all  y'  knew  him  well, 

Pattern  of  vertue. 

Kind  to  all  was  he. 

Loued  by  friends. 

Feard  of  his  enemie. 

Embalmd  in  tears, 

Enuey  itselfe  stood  dumb. 

Snacht  from  ye  world 

In  times  most  troublesome. 

When  the  meeting-house  was  destroyed  by  fire  in  i  '^G'$>, 
this  gravestone  was  probably  broken  into  fragments  b\'  the 
falling  timbers  or  shattered  by  the  sudden  ai^jilication  of 
water  to  its  heated  surface.  No  trace  of  it  can  now  be 
found. 

Administration  on  the  estate  of  Henjamin  Pierce  was 
granted  Oct.  1,  1713.  His  eldest  sur\i\ing  son,  Charles 
Pierce,  came  into  possession  of  the  property  when  he  arrixed 
at  the  age  of  twenty-one.  He  married  Sarah  1^'rost,  of  Kit- 
ter)',  Me.,  Nov.  20,  171S.  lie  IkkI  children  as  follows: 
Charles,  born  h^eb.  2,  1719;  Henjamin,  born  I''eb.  24,  1723; 
William,  born  Dec.  29,  1731. 

The  eldest  son,  Charles,  inherited  the  house  and  farm  on 
the  death  of  his  father,  which  occui'rctl  Jan.  23,   1764. 


THE   SPENCER-PIERCE   HOUSE  37 

The  intended  marriage  of  Cliarles  Pierce,  Jr.  (born 
Feb.  2,  1 719),  to  Mary  h'everyear,  of  Boston,  was  published 
March  24,  175Q.  She  died  April  27,  1760,  aged  twenty-two 
years,  leaving  one  daughter,  who  afterwards  married  Thomas 
Butman.  Charles  Pierce,  her  husband,  died  Nov.  29,  1772, 
leaving  no  male  issue. 

At  this  date  (1772)  William,  born  Dec.  29,  1731,  was 
married,  but  had  no  children  ;  and  Benjamin,  born  F'eb.  24, 
1723,  was  not  living,  having  died  Sept.  7,  1765,  leaving  one 
son,  Daniel,  who  was  born  in  1754. 

Five  years  later  (Sept.  9,  1777)  there  was  "an  indent- 
ure to  dock  the  entail  of  the  Pierce  farm  by  and  between 
Moses  Acres  of  Newbury,  cooper,  of  the  first  part,  Timothy 
Pettingell,  of  Newbury,  yeoman,  of  the  second  part,  Daniel 
Pierce,  of  Newbury,  yeoman,  of  the  3''  part,  William  Pierce, 
of  Newbury,  yeoman,  of  the  4"'  part,  &  E^benezer  P"lood,  of 
Newbury,  laborer,  of  the  fifth  part,"  by  which  Daniel  Pierce 
conveys  to  William  Pierce,  uncle  of  said  Daniel,  land  and 
buildings  thereon. 

Recorded  in  the  P2ssex  Registry  of  Deeds,  book  135,  page 
256,  and  in  the  same  book,  page  258,  there  is  a  similar  indent- 
ure from  William  Pierce  to  his  nephew,  Daniel  Pierce.  The 
next  year  (1778)  there  w^as  a  partition  of  this  property,  and 
one-half  of  the  house  and  land  w^as  assigned  to  William 
Pierce,  and  the  other  half  to  Daniel  Pierce  (see  Registry  of 
Deeds,  book  135,  page  259).  A  plan  of  this  division  is  re- 
corded in  book  136,  page  6"]  \  and,  for  the  convenience  of 
those  who  are  interested  in  local  history,  a  tracing  of  that 
plan  has  been  made,  and  is  inserted  with  this  sketch. 

Daniel  Pierce  sold  his  part  of  the  house  and  land  to 
Nathaniel  Tracy  in  1778.  (Deed  recorded  in  book  136,  page 
92.)  William  Pierce  died  March  15,  1778.  P!unice  Pierce, 
his  widow,  was  appointed  administratrix  July  21,  1778;  and 
she  with  other  heirs  sold  to  Nathaniel  Tracy  the  other  half 
of  the  house  and  land  (see  Deeds,  book  136,  pages  91,  121, 
123,  181,  249). 

At  this  time  Nathaniel  Tracy  was  rich  and  prosperous. 
He  lived   in   magnificent   style  ;  and,  besides  the  brick  house 


30  OCLD    NFJVBURY 

on  State  Street  built  for  him  by  his  father,  Patrick  Tracy,  he 
owned  a  large  farm  and  dwelling-house  at  Medford,  and  also 
the  house  at  Cambridge  formerly  occujMed  by  Washington 
as  headquarters.  To  these  elegant  and  desirable  residences 
he  now  added  the  old  stone  house,  where  he  died  nearly 
twenty  years  later.  The  story  of  his  life  and  the  interesting 
events  with  which  he  was  connected  will  be  more  fully  re- 
lated in  the  history  of  the  brick  house  on  State  Street,  with 
which  he  and  other  members  of  his  family  were  prominently 
identified. 

Compelled  by  financial  disasters  to  dispose  of  some  of  this 
property,  he  sold.  Now  1 7,  1 786,  the  old  stone  house  and 
farm  to  Thomas  Russell,  of  Boston  (see  deed,  recorded  book 
146,  page  214). 

Jan.  I,  1787,  Thomas  Russell,  of  Boston,  merchant,  leased 
to  Patrick  Tracy  for  his  life,  at  an  annual  rent  of  ^^133 
6.y.  8^/.,  to  be  paid  by  Nathaniel  Trac)',  the  Pierce  farm  of 
three  hundred  acres.  The  lease  also  provided  that,  in  case 
l^atrick  Tracy  should  die  within  seven  years  from  the  date  of 
the  lease,  Nathaniel  Tracy  could  retain  possession  of  the 
propert)'  until  the  expiration  of  the  seven  years,  and  ujion 
the  payment  of  the  sum  of  ;^, 5,333  ds.  8(/.  to  the  said 
Thomas  Russell  a  deed  of  conveyance  would  be  made  to  the 
said  Nathaniel  Tracy  (P^ssex  Deeds,  book  146,  page  215). 

April  7,  1 791,  Thomas  Russell  conveyed  the  Pierce  farm, 
land  and  buildings,  to  Nathaniel  Tracy  in  exchange  for  a 
brick  house  on  State  Street,  "which  was  de\ised  to  the  said 
'Pracy  under  the  will  of  his  father,  Patrick  Trac\' '"  (book 
153,   page  210). 

Nathaniel  Tracy  died  Sept.  20,  1796;  and  h'eb.  21, 
1797,  Mary  Tracy,  guardian  of  the  children  of  Nathaniel 
Tracy,  b}'  the  authorit}'  of  the  (ieneral  Court  sold  to  Offin 
J-Joardman  for  $12,800  "the  farm  whereon  I  now  live" 
(book    162,   i^age    144). 

'Phe  new  owner  was  a  man  well  known  in  this  \icinit\'  be- 
cause of  his  connection  witli  the  caplui'e  of  the  British  ship 
"  l-"iie!ids,"  Jan.  15,  1 77'">,  just  outside  the  bar  at  the 
mouth   of  the   Merrimack    l\i\er.      lie  retained    possession  of 


fip'^ 


4° 


Oi'LD   XEWBURY 


the  property  until  his  death  ;  and  the  executors  of  his  will 
April  26,  18  I  3,  b\'  license  from  court,  sold  it  to  John  lY-ttin- 
gell  (book  200,  page  236). 

During  a  portion  of  the  time  that  Mr.  Pettingell  owned 
the  farm  the  stone  house  was  unoccupied,  and  the  wooden 
addition  at  the  extreme  cw(\  was  used  b)'  the  tenants. 

The  heirs  of  John   Pettingell,  residuary  devisees,  and  trus- 
tee under   his    will,   proved  December,    1828,   conveyed    the 
premises,   Oct.  i,  1861,  to   Edward   H. 
Little  (book  628,  page  240). 

Edward   H.    Little  died  in    1877,  in- 
testate ;  and  the  house  and  farm  were 
^^— ,        assigned,  in   the  di\ision  of  the 
estate,  to  his  son,  Ed- 
ward F.   Little,   who 
now  resides  there. 

When  the  age  of 
this  old  house,  with 
its  picturesque  exte- 
rior, the  solid  ma- 
sonry of  its  walls, 
and  the  men  who 
have  owned  and  oc- 
cupied it,  is  consid- 
ered and  allowed  to 
quicken  the  thought 
and  imagination,  it  tells  an  interesting  story  of  old  colonial 
days.  There  are  few  residences  in  New  England  that  are 
more  attractive  or  fascinating.  Its  style  of  architecture  is 
remarkable,  considering  the  early  date  at  which  it  was 
built.  Its  walls  are  composed  of  se\eral  \arieties  of  stone  ; 
and  some  of  them  must  have  been  brought  from  a  long  dis- 
tance, i:)erhaps  by  means  of  boats  or  rafts  down  the  Merri- 
mack Ri\er.  Tbe  bricks  used  in  the  construction  of  the 
front  porch,  as  well  as  the  sc|uare  tile  which  form  the  Hoor, 
were  i)robab!y  brought  from  j*jigland.  Hrick\ards  were 
established  at  Salem  and  Medford  pre\ious  tt)  1680;  but 
the    finished    product     of    those     \'ards    was    of    an    infei'ior 


THE   SPEiYCER-PIERCE   HOUSE  41 

quality,  and  the  size  of  the  bricks  was  fixed  by  order  of  the 
General  Court,  as  follows :  "  Every  brick  shall  measure  g 
inches  long,  2^  inches  thick,  and  4^  inches  wide."  Im- 
ported English  brick  were  much  smaller  and  more  smoothly 
moulded. 

The  house  was  built  in  the  form  of  a  cross.  On  the 
northern  projection,  where  the  kitchen  is  located,  a  tall  brick 
chimney  rises  from  a  stone  foundation,  outside  the  rear  wall, 
to  the  roof  above,  as  shown  in  the  engraving  on  the  oppo- 
site page. 

"The  great  porch  of  this  old  house,"  writes  Mrs.  Harriet 
Prescott  Spofford,  in  an  article  published  in  Harper  s  Maga- 
■sZ/^t- for  July,  1875,  "is  said  to  be  the  most  beautiful  archi- 
tectural specimen  in  this  part  of  the  country,  although  it 
doubtless  owes  part  of  its  beauty  to  the  mellow  and  varied 
coloring  which  two  hundred  years  have  given  it.  Yet  the 
bevelled  bricks  of  its  arches  and  casements  and  the  exquisite 
nicety  of  its  ornamentation  lead  the  careful  scrutinizer  to 
side  with  those  who  dismiss  the  idea  of  its  having  been  a 
garrison  house,  and  to  conjecture  that  that  idea  gained  cur- 
rency from  the  fact  that  it  was  once  used  to  store  powder  in, 
—  a  fact  that  was  fixed  in  the  popular  memory  by  an  ex- 
plosion there  which  blew  out  the  side  of  the  house,  and  landed 
an  old  slave  of  the  occupant  on  her  bed  in  the  boughs  of  an 
adjacent  apple-tree." 


.  r:^ 


EDWARD    RAWSON. 


EDWARD   RAWSON. 


Edward  Rawson  was  born  in  the  village  of  Gillingham, 
county  of  Dorset,  England,  April  15,  161 5.  He  married 
Rachel,  daughter  of  Thomas  Perne,  and  grand-daughter  of 
John  Hooker,  and  came  to  Newbury  in  1636  or  1637,  leaving 
his  eldest  child,  a  daughter,  with  relatives  in  England,  where 
she  afterwards  married  an  "  opulent  gentleman,"  whose  name 
is  unknown.  He  was  admitted  to  the  rights  and  privileges 
of  a  freeman  in  March,  1637-8  ;  and  in  May  of  that  year  he 
served  as  deputy  to  the  General  Court  from  Newbury.  June 
8,  1638,  he  was  fined  5 .v.  for  absence  when  court  was  called  ; 
but  Edward  Converse  was  afterwards  admonished  for  his 
neglect  to  provide  men  and  boats  for  the  convenience  of 
travellers,  and  was  excused  upon  payment  of  Mr.  Rawson's 
fine,  thus  indicating  that  the  deputy  was  delayed  in  his  prog- 
ress by  some  neglect  on  the  part  of  the  ferryman. 

In  July  he  was  chosen  one  of  the  selectmen,  and  in  August 
his  name  appears  as  one  of  the  signers  of  an  agreement  with 
Richard  Dummer  for  the  erection  of  a  mill  "  for  the  grynd- 
ing  of  corne."  Sept.  6,  1638,  the  General  Court  appointed 
Edward  Rawson,  John  Woodbridge,  and  Edward  Woodman 
as  commissioners  to  decide  small  causes  in  Newbury  ;  and 
from  the  town  records  it  appears  that  Nov.  19,  1638, 

It  \va.s  ordered  that  Edward  Rawson  should  supply  the  place  of 
Mr.  Woodbridge,  and  be  the  Public  Notary  &  Register  for  the  town 
of  Newbury;  and,  while  he  so  remains,  to  be  allowed  by  the  town  after 
the  rate  of  five  pounds  per  annum  ffor  his  paynes. 

He  was  e\-idently  a  man  of  ability  and  familiar  with  public 
affairs,  though  only  twenty-three  years  of  age.  His  subse- 
quent career  justifies  the  confidence  reposed   in   him   by  his 


44  OULD    XEWBUKY 

fellow-townsmen   who   honored   him    with   so   man)'  important 
offices. 

In  1639  he  represented  Newhur\'  in  the  (ieneral  Court, 
and  again  in  1642.  In  the  town  records,  under  date  of 
January,    1643-4,   is  the    following    entry:  — 

In  consideration  of  Mr.  Rawson'.s  keeping  the  towne  hook,  it  is 
ordered  by  us.  according  to  our  power  from  the  towne  and  courte 
granted  to  us,  that  he  shall  be  freed  and  exempted  from  all  towne  rates 
for  one  whole  yeare  from  the  twenty-ninth  of  September  last  to  the 
twenty-ninth  of  September  next,  1644. 

In  May,  1644,  Rawson  again  took  his  seat  in  the  House 
of  Deputies,  and  thereafter  was  annually  re-elected  repre- 
sentative from  Newbury  until  the  year  1650.  In  the  last 
week  of  the  session,  extending  from  May  14  to  July  5,  1645, 
the  dejDuties  passed  the  following  vote  :  — 

Edward  Rawson  is  chosen  &  appointed  Clarke  to  the  house  Depu's 
for  one  whole  yeere  to  Enter  all  votes  past  in  both  houses  &  those  alsoe 
y'  passe  only  by  them  into  their  booke  of  Records. —  Massachusetts 
Colony  Records,  book  3,  page  21. 

While  acting  as  clerk,  he  still  retained  his  seat  as  deput)' ; 
and  in  November,  1645,  he  was  appointed  commissioner  "to 
see  people  joyne  in  marriage  in  Newbury,  during  the  pleasure 
of  the  Court."  The  full  text  of  this  ajipointment  reads  as 
follows  :  — 

In  Ans''  to  y''  peticon  of  ye  Towne  of  Xcw])ery  Edward  Raw  son  is 
Appointed  &  Authorized  by  this  Courte  to  marry  such  as  are  published 
according  to  ye  order  of  y''  Courte  &  during  v''  Courts  pleasure. 

This  entr)'  was  made  b\'  Rawson  himself  in  tlie  records 
of  the  House  of  ne])uties,  book  3,  page  S4.  lie  pi-obabl}- 
continued  to  ser\e  as  clerk  of  the  lower  house  until  he  was 
elected  secretar)'  of  the  colon}'.  Ma)'  22,  1650. 

Soon  after  his  election  to  this  office  he  remoxed  with  liis 
family  to  l-5oston,  where  he  resided  during  the  remainder  of 
his    life,  frequently  \'isiting    Newbui)'  on   matters  connected 


EDWARD    RAIVSON  45 

with  his  own  personal  affairs  or  official  duties.  When  Agnes, 
the  wife  of  Deacon  Richard  Knight,  of  the  First  Church  in 
Newbury,  was  accused  of  extravagance  in  dress,  Edward 
Rawson  was  induced  to  write  to  one  of  the  magistrates 
at   Salem  as  follows  :  — 

Honorable  S/r, 

An  honest  godly  man,  a  friend  of  mine  in  Newbury,  whose  name  is 
Richard  Knight,  whether  of  ignorance  or  wilfuhiess  by  some  neighbour, 
is  presented  for  his  wife's  wearing  of  a  silk  hood,  supposing  he  has  not 
been  worth  two  hundred  pounds.  It  being  a  grievance  to  him,  who  is 
advanced  (in  years)  to  be  summoned  to  a  court,  that  never  useth  to 
trouble  any,  at  his  request  I  thought  fit  to  inform  on  my  owne  knowl- 
edge his  estate  is  better  worth  than  three  hundred,  and  therefore  I 
desire  you  would,  as  you  may,  forbeare,  in  your  warrant,  to  insert  his 
name  in  it,  it  may  be ;  if  not,  at  least  that  you  would  take  private  satis- 
faction of  him  in  your  chamber,  which  he  can  easily  give  }ou,  or  any, 
in    a  moment.      Not   else   at    present,    but   my  service  to    you   and    M'' 

Svmon  Bradstreet. 

Your  friend  and  servant, 

Edwaru   Rawsox. 
Now  at   Newbury,  the  fourteenth  of  August,  1653.* 

For  thirty-five  years  Edward  Rawson  was  annually  elected 
secretary  of  the  colony.  May  15,  1686,  Edward  Randolph 
arrived  in  Boston,  bearing  a  commission  to  Joseph  Dudley  as 
president,  and  sixteen  others  as  councillors  of  New  England, 
until  a  governor-in-chief  should  be  appointed  by  the  king. 

Raw^son  drew^  up  and  signed  the  resolves  adopted  by  the 
General  Court  in  answer  to  the  charges  and  accusations 
brought  against  the  colonial  government  ;  and  this  was,  prob- 
ably, his  last  official  act. 

Upon  the  restoration  of  the  old  charter  in  April,  i68g, 
Rawson  was  not  reinstated  in  office.  His  age  probably  pre- 
vented him  from  taking  an  active  part  in  opposition  to  the 
administration  of  Gox'ernor  Andros.  He  died,  honored  and 
respected,  Aug.  27,  1693,  aged  seventy-eight,  at  his  residence 
in  "  Rawson's  Lane,"  Boston,  now  Bromfield  Street. 

Several  of  his  sons  went  to    England,   and   settled   there. 

*Cofifiii"s  History  of  Newburj',  page  5.S. 


REBECCA    RAWSON. 


EDWARD    RAWS  ON  47 

Two  of  his  daughters  died  young,  and  four  were  married  in 
Boston.  Rebecca  Rawson,  whose  portrait  accompanies  this 
sketch,  was  the  sixth  daughter  and  ninth  child  of  the  secre- 
tary. She  was  the  heroine  of  a  romantic  tale  that  Whittier 
has  made  attractive  and  interesting  in  the  volume  entitled 
'<  Leaves  from  Margaret  Smith's  Journal  in  the  Province  of 
Massachusetts  Bay."  She  was  born  May  23,  1656,  and  was 
tenderly  nurtured  and  carefully  educated.  She  became  en- 
gaged, and  in  due  time  married  Thomas  Rumsey,  a  young 
man  from  England,  of  respectable  appearance  and  pleasing 
address,  who  pretended  to  be  Sir  Thomas  Hale,  Jr.,  the 
nephew  of  Lord  Chief  Justice  Hale. 

The  following  affidavits,  taken  from  Coffin's  History  of  New- 
bury, page  398,  give  the  details  of  this  unfortunate  marriage  :  — 

The  testimony  of  Theodore  Atkinson  and  Alary,  his  wife,  inhabitants 
of  Boston,  in  New  England,  saith  :  — 

That  about  the  3"'  month  in  ye  year  1678  Thomas  Rumsey  came  to 
me  and  tendered  his  service  to  me  for  one  year  to  work  with  me,  and 
he  tokl  me  that  he  was  a  Kentish  man,  and  that  his  father  lived  near 
Canterbury,  and  that  he  was  a  yeoman,  and  had  an  estate  of  about 
^400  a  year,  and  also  that  his  father  died  when  he  was  but  young,  that 
his  father's  estate  did  fall  to  him  at  his  mother-in-law's  decease,  and 
also  he  pretended  that  he  came  over  to  New  England  upon  the  account 
of  religion,  and  farther  he  hired  himself  with  me  for  a  year,  for  to 
attend  my  business  and  to  keep  my  book  of  accounts  and  for  the 
gathering  in  of  my  debts ;  but,  when  he  had  been  about  a  month  with 
me,  he  pretended  he  was  one  that  had  been  highly  bred,  but  he  would 
not  say  farther  what  he  was,  but  about  5  months  after  he  came  to  me 
then  he  told  me  his  father  was  a  Knight  and  a  Baronet,  and  that  his 
mother-in-law  was  a  Lady.  So  he  lived  and  carried  himself,  pretending 
he  was  highly  bred,  that  I,  the  said  Atkinson,  did  not  set  him  on 
work,  because  he  promised  me  he  would  satisfy  me  for  what  charges 
and  expenses  .  .  .  about  him;  but  a  little  time  after  he  came  to  me  he 
began  to  discover  himself,  so  as  his  religion  did  seem  to  wear  away, 
and  before  the  year  was  expired  he  changed  his  name  and  said  his 
name  was  Hale,  and  professed  he  had  been  a  great  traveller  in  ye 
Streights  for  about  two  and  twenty  months,  and  that  his  mother  was 
called  the  lady  Hale,  and  paid  him  his  money  by  bills  of  exchange  from 
time  to  time,  that  she  was  a  Lady  that  had  ^300  per  annum  of  her  own 
that  she  brought  with  her.  and  that  his  father  had  about  ^800  a  year, 
and  a  vast  estate,  which  lie  durst  not,  nor  would  not,   mention  lest  he 


48  OULD   XEIVBUKY 

should  be  laughed  at,  and  not.  believed,  that  all  his  father's  estate  after 
his  mother's  decease  was  his.  those  and  such  like  unheard-of  stories  as 
those,  in  which  is  not  the  least  shadow  of  truth  (as  the  deponents  are 
informed)  and  as  the  deponents  now  perceive,  he  made  use  of  as  a 
delusion  to  put  a  cheat  on  Mr.  Edward  Rawson.  of  Boston,  aforesaid, 
to  accomplish  his  abominable  villainy  and  deceive  of  his  daughter, 
Mrs.  Rebecca  Rawson.  whom  he  was  married  unto  by  a  minister  of  the 
gospel  on  the  first  day  of  July.  1679.  '"  the  presence  of  near  40  wit- 
ne.sses. 

The  other  paper  gives  the  .sequel  of  the  story  in  tlie  follow- 
ing words  :  — 

Thomas  Rumsey  pretended  to  be  Sir  Thomas  Hale.  Jr..  nephew  of 
Lord  Chief  Justice  Hale,  made  a  respectable  appearance,  appeared  to 
be  well  acquainted  with  Lord  Hale.  and.  being  a  person  of  a  very  hand- 
some address,  paid  his  devoirs  to  Rebecca  Rawson.  who  was  accounted 
one  of  the  most  beautiful,  polite,  and  accomplished  young  ladies  in 
Boston,  and  had  the  vanitv  to  think  herself  suitable  to  make  the  young 
lord  a  wife.  Accordinglv.  thev  were  married,  and.  handsomely  fur- 
nished, sailed  for  England,  and  safely  arrived.  She  went  on  shore  in 
a  dishabille,  leaving  her  trunks  on  board  the  vessel,  and  went  to  lodge 
with  a  relation  of  hers.  In  the  morning  early  he  arose,  took  the  keys, 
and  told  her  he  would  send  the  trunks  on  shore,  that  she  might  be 
dressed  before  dinner.  He  sent  the  trunks  up,  and  she  waited  impa- 
tiently for  the  keys  till  one  or  two  o'clock,  but.  he  not  coming,  she 
broke  open  the  trunks,  and.  to  her  inexpressible  surprise,  she  found 
herself  stript  of  evervthing.  and  her  trunks  filled  with  combustible  mat- 
ter, on  which  her  kinsman  ordered  his  carriage,  and  they  went  to  a 
place,  where  she  stopt  with  her  husband  the  night  before.  She  en- 
quired for  Sir  Thomas  Hale.  Jr.  They  said  he  had  not  been  there  for 
some  days.  She  said  she  was  sure  he  was  there  the  night  before. 
They  said  Thomas  Rumsey  had  been  there  with  a  young  lady,  but  was 
gone  to  his  wife  in  Canterbury,  and  she  saw  him  no  more.  Having 
learned  many  curious  works,  such  as  painting  on  glass,  she  thought  her- 
self al)le  to  su])i)ort  herself:  and  on  her  return  to  America  she  was 
swallowed  up  h\  the  earthquake  at  I'ort  Royal  in  .America. 

She  embarked  for  l^oston,  b}-  wa\-  of  Jamaica,  in  a  \essel 
which  belonged  to  one  of  her  inicles.  While  the  ship  was 
at  Tort  Royal,  in  Jamaica,  jirst  reath'  to  sail  lor  Boston, 
the  great  earthquake  of  June  9,  1692,  occm-red.  The  ship 
was  dismantled  and  wrecked,  and  all  the  crew  and  passengers 
lost,  with  the  exception  of  the  owner  of  the  vessel,  who  haj)- 


EDWARD    RAU'SON  49 

pence!  to  be  on  shore  completing  the  settlement  of  his  ac- 
counts,  and   so   escaped  to  tell   the  tale. 

The  portraits  of  Edward  Rawson  and  Rebecca  Rawson,  now 
in  the  possession  of  the  New  England  Historic  Genealogical 
Society,  No.  i8  Somerset  Street,  Boston,  were  discovered 
nearly  fifty  years  ago  by  Reuben  Rawson  Dodge,  of  East 
Sutton,  now  Wilkinsonville,  Mass.,  in  the  old  Rawson  house 
at  Ouincy.  They  had  been  handed  down  through  Mr. 
Dodge's  grandfather,  Ebenezer  Rawson,  and  the  family  of 
Judge  Dorr,  of  Mendon,  for  at  least  five  generations.  On 
the  portrait  of  Edward  Rawson  is  plainly  inscribed  "  Natis, 
15"'  April,  1615 — yEtatis  suae  55,  1670,"  the  exact  date  of 
his  birth  and  the  probable  date  of  the  painting.  T\\q.  name 
of  the  artist  is  unknown. 

Both  of  these  portraits  were  engra\'ed  and  published  with 
the  memoir  of  Edward  Rawson  and  the  genealogy  of  the 
Rawson  family  in  1849.  Through  the  kindness  and  courtesy 
of  Mr.  Dodge,  who  collected  and  arranged  most  of  the  mate- 
rials for  that  volume,  copies  of  these  steel  engravings  have 
been  made,  and  are  published  in  connection  with  this  sketch 
of  the  life  and  early  home  of  the  second  town  clerk  of 
Newbury. 

Among  the  men  prominent  in  public  affairs  in  this  vicin- 
ity, previous  to  1650,  none  were  more  frequently  honored 
with  public  ofifice  than  Edward  Rawson  ;  and  the  large  tracts 
of  land  granted  to  him  indicate  that  he  was  a  man  of  some 
considerable  wealth,  and  contributed  largely  to  the  financial 
support  of  the  new  settlement.  Nearly  six  hundred  acres 
of  meadow  and  upland  were  laid  out  to  him.  The  grant 
originally  extended  from  the  Merrimack  River  to  the  easterly 
side  of  Turkey  Hill,  and  was  covered  for  the  most  part  with 
a  thick  growth  of  forest  trees.  Subsequently  a  portion  of 
this  land  was  exchanged  for  three  hundred  acres  on  the 
westerly  side  of  Turkey  Hill  along  the  banks  of  the  Arti- 
choke River.  The  low,  level  marshland  in  that  neighbor- 
hood, above  the  upper  bridge  over  the  Artichoke,  is  still 
known  as   Rawson' s  meadow. 

An  entry  in  the  Proprietors'   Records  for  the  town  of  New- 


5 o  OULD    XE  JVB C 'A'  i ' 

bury,    undated,   but    evidently    made    during   the   year    1638, 
states  that 

There  was  granted  to  Edward  Rawson.  in  lieu  of  his  resigning  his 
two  hundred  acres  formerly  granted  unto  him  at  the  l)irchen  meadow, 
two  hundred  acres  of  upland  on  this  side  Artichoke  river,  with  all  the 
meadows  on  both  sides  of  that  river  &  one  hundred  acres  of  upland 
more  on  the  other  side  of  the  river,  to  enjoy  to  him  &  his  heirs  forever. 

Another  grant,  without  date,  is  also  recorded  as  follows  :  — 

To  M"'  Edward  Rawson  forty  acres  of  upland  as  it  is  laid  out,  in 
length  one  hundred  and  sixty  Rods,  in  breadth  forty  Rods,  and  Bounded 
by  the  Common  on  the  North  side  and  West  end,  John  Moulton  on  the 
South  side,  and  the  way  Lift  by  the  Towne,  of  four  Rods  broad  Joyning 
to  Merrimack  River  on  the  East. 

l*]vidence  that  this  grant  extended  to  the  Merrimack  River 
is  clearly  shown  by  reference  to  a  deed  from  Tristram  Coffin 
to  Lionel  >Jorth,  dated  April  12,  1659,  and  recorded  at 
Salem  (Ipswich  Deeds),  book  i,  page  645,  which  conveys 

r 
f^orty  acres  of  upland  as  it  hath  been  laid  out  and  given  him  in  pos- 
session, situate,  lying  &  being  in  Newbury  aforesaid,  being  part  of  the 
farme  formerly  granted  by  the  town  of  Newbury  unto  M'  Edward  Raw- 
son,  being  halfe  the  four  score  acres  which  I,  the  said  Tristram  Coffin, 
lately  purchased  of  the  above  named  Mr.  Rawson  &  the  east  side  of  the 
above  said  four  score  acres  being  bounded  with  the  land  of  William 
Moody  on  the  west,  Merrimack  river  over  against  .Mr.  Carr's  iland  on 
the  north,  the  way  to  the  ferry  on  the  east,  and  the  way  to  Artichoke 
river  on  the  south,  with  all  &  singular  y*^  profits,  wood,  timber  or  under- 
wood privilidges  &  appurtenances  thereunto  belonging. 

The  dwelling-house  connected  with  Mr.  Rawson's  tarm 
was  on  the  westerly  side  of  the  countr)'  road,  now  High 
Street,  and  near  the  head  of  Woodland  Street.  This  house, 
with  forty  acres  of  land  untler  and  adjoining  the  same,  was 
sold  soon  after  his  election  to  the  office  of  secretar\"  ot  the 
colony.  The  terms  and  conditions  of  the  sale  are  named  in 
the  followinir  deed  :  — 


EDWARD    RAIVSON  51 

Know  all  men  by  these  presents  that  I,  Edward  Rawson,  late  of  New- 
bury in  New  England.  (lent.,  for  &  in  Consideration  of  One  hundred 
pounds  paid  by  \\'illiam  Peelsbury  of  Dorchester,  yeoman,  in  hand 
fifteen  poundes  and  by  Security  bearing  date  with  these  presents  in 
manner  &  forme  to  be  paid  as  in  the  Same  more  largely  appeareth,  Have 
Given,  Granted,  bargained  &  Sold,  &  by  these  presents  doe  give,  grant, 
bargain  &  Sell  unto  ye  said  W'"  Peelsbury  &  his  heirs  all  that  my 
dwelling  house  as  it  is  Situated  in  Newbury,  with  forty  acres  of  upland 
be  it  more  or  less  to  ye  Same  adjoyning,  with  Garden  &  fences  to  ye 
same  belonging  as  it  is  now  encompassed  about  with  the  Comon  at  one 
End,  the  highway  at  the  other,  John  Pemberton  land,  and  the  land 
of  Henry  Sewall,  junr.,  of  one  side  and  the  land  of  W"  Elusy  on  the 
other  side,  with  Tenn  acres  of  meadow,  taking  it  in  any  One  place  of  ye 
sd  Rawson's  meadow,  together  with  ye  bushes  to  be  accounted  part 
from  ye  Sides  of  ye  upland  to  ye  river,  with  liberty  for  Comonage  For 
Tenn  Cowes.  pt  of  ye  sd  Rawson's  liberty  in  the  Cow  Comon  &  so  pro- 
portionable privilege  if  Ever  the  Comon  be  stinted  in  all  other,  the  Cow 
Common,  as  in  the  Towne  booke  of  Newbury,  is  granted  to  ye  said 
Rawson,  to  Have  &  Hold  all  the  above  mentioned  premises  to  him  the 
Said  Wm.  Pilsbery  &  his  heirs  forever  from  the  day  of  ye  Date  hereof  ; 
&  the  Said  Edward  Rawson  doth  hereby  Engage  to  Warrantize  the  Sale 
of  all  the  above  mentioned  premises  Against  all  men  Whatsoever  Claym- 
ing  in,  by,  from  or  under  him,  his  heirs  or  assigns  forever.  In  Witness 
Whereof  I  have  Hereunto  Set  my  hand  &  Seale  This  thirteenth  day  of 
December,  1651. 

Edward   Rawsox,  &  a  Seale. 
Signed.  Sealed  and  delivered  in 
the  presence  of  us, 

.    AxTHOxv  Stoddard 

JOHX  WlSWALL. 

Entered  and  recorded  3  January.  1651. 

Edward   Rawsox,  Recorder. 

This  Deed  of  Sale  was  acknowledged  by  Mr.  Edward  Rawson  to  be 

his  act  and  deed  to  ye  use  of  William  Pillsbery,  whereunto  Airs  Rachel 

Rawson,  ye  wife  of  ye  sd  Edward  Rawson,  gave  full  Consent  hereunto 

&  renounced  all  right  of  Dowry  hereunto  this  first  of  ye  nth  mo.,  1651, 

before  me. 

William  Hibbixs. 

Examd.  Stephex  Sewall,  Regr* 

*  Essex  Deeds,  book  13,  leaf  94. 


EDWARD    RAWSOM  53 

William  Pillsbuiy  removed  with  his  family  to  Newbury, 
and  took  possession  of  his  newly  acquired  property  early  in 
the  spring  of  165  i -2. 

At  his  death  in  1686  he  left  the  house  and  land  to  his  son, 
Job  Pillsbury,  who  continued  to  occupy  it  until  about  the 
year  1700,  when  he  built  a  new  house  on  the  same  land, 
only  a  few  rods  distant.  In  his  will  dated  August,  17 16,  he 
gives  his  share  in  the  new  house  to  his  son  Daniel,  and  his 
old  house  and  shop  to  his  son  Josiah.  The  latter  son  sold 
his  part  of  the  property  to  his  brother  Daniel  ;  and,  after  an 
interval  of  a  few  years,  the  old  Rawson  house,  being  out  of 
repair,  was  taken  down. 

A  photographic  \iew  of  the  domicile  erected  for  the  con- 
venience of  Job  Pillsbury  and  his  family  in  1700  is  given  on 
the  opposite  page,  the  front  yard  originally  being  open  to 
the  street.  It  was  a  quaint-looking  building,  containing  two 
rooms  on  the  lower  floor,  one  on  each  side  of  the  great 
chimney  which  occupied  the  centre  of  the  house,  and  two 
chambers  above,  about  twenty  feet  square,  and  over  all  a 
large  attic.  The  two-story  L  at  right  angles  with  the  main 
house  was  built  in  1782  ;  and  the  projection,  covered  with 
shingles,  next  the  street  was  added  at  a  later  date  for  a 
kitchen,  with  a  shed  for  the  baiting  of  horses  attached.  Not- 
withstanding its  great  age,  the  house  was  in  a  good  state  of 
preservation  when  it  was  destroyed  by  fire  July  4,  1889. 

It  was  owned  and  occupied  by  some  member  of  the  Pills- 
bury family  from  the  date  of  its  erection  in  1700  until  the 
death  of  Joshua  Pillsbury  in  the  latter  part  of  the  year  1887, 
except  a  brief  interval  when  it  was  rented  to  Da\'id  P^mery, 
who  with  his  wife,  Sally  Smith,  from  Crane-neck  Hill,  made 
it  a  house  of  public  entertainment.  During  the  War  of  18 12, 
when  smuggling  in  ever}^  form  was  boldly  carried  on  in  sea- 
port towns,  *'  P^mery's  tavern  was  a  noted  depcjt  and  safe 
deposit  for  the  illicit  trade,  and  often  every  hiding-place  in 
the  house  and  barns  would  be  filled  with  contraband  articles." 

Joshua  Pillsbury,  returning  from  Boscawen,  N.H.,  to  which 
place  his  father  had  removed  some  years  previously,  married 
a  daughter  of  Captain  Samuel  Rolfe,  and  then  started  house- 


54  OULD   NEWBURY 

keeping  in  the  old  house.  There  he  with  his  wife  and 
ehildren  lived  ;  and  there  he  died,  the  last  survivor  of  them 
all.  Pending  the  settlement  of  his  estate,  the  house  was  left 
vacant  for  several  months.  Taking  advantage  of  this  fact,  it 
was  set  on  fire  at  night  by  st)me  evil-disposed  person  or  i)er- 
sons,  and  totally  destroyed. 

Another  house  has  recently  been  erected  on  the  same  spot, 
of  the  same  dimensions  and  the  same  general  style  of  archi- 
tect ui"e. 

"The  overhanging  eaves,  the  projecting  story,  the  small- 
paned  windows  of  different  sizes,  irregularly  placed,"  the  low 
ceiling,  and  wide  rooms  with  hard-wood  floors  and  open  fire- 
places have  all  been  restored.  The  new  house  stands  to-day 
an  exact  counterpart  of  the  old  one  built  nearly  two  centuries 
ago  on  land  William  Pillsbury  bought  of  Edward  Rawson  in 
the  year  165 1.  Two  grand-daughters  of  Joshua  Pillsbury, 
Misses  PLmily  A.  Getchell  and  Ellen  P.  Getchell,  nt)w  own 
and  occupy  the  house  and  land. 


THE   FERRY   AT  CARR'S   ISLAND. 


In  September,  1638,  the  General  Court  of  the  colony  of 
Massachusetts  Bay  granted  Simon  Bradstreet  and  his  asso- 
ciates liberty  to  begin  a  plantation  north  of  the  Merrimack. 
Early  in  the  spring  of  1639  a  company  was  organized  to 
locate  the  roads  and  make  a  division  of  the  land.  The  Gen- 
eral Court  named  the  plantation  Colchester  (Sept.  4,  1639), 
but  the  year  following  (Oct.  7,  1640)  changed  the  name 
from   Colchester  to   Salisbury. 

At  the  first  meeting  of  the  proprietors,  George  Carr,  ship- 
wright, who  had  lived  at  Ipswich  for  some  years  previously, 
was  granted  a  house  lot  of  three  acres  ;  and  at  a  general 
meeting  of  the  freemen  of  the  town  held  July  3,  1640, 

It  was  Ordered  y*  George  Carr  shall  have  the  Hand  where  he  now 
dwells:  as  well  Marsh  as  upland,  it  being  the  greatest  Hand  w"'in  the 
Towne  bounds  in  the  river  Merrimack;  w"^  his  3  Acre  house  Lott 
more  or  less  lying  upon  the  est  of  AP  Winsley  house  lott  &  upon  the 
weast  of  M''  ffrancis  Doues  house  lott  for  the  whole  of  his  first  Di- 
vision. 

It  appears  from  subsequent  action  of  the  General  Court 
that  this  island,  as  well  as  "  Ramme  Island,  Deare  Island, 
and  Eagle  Island,"  were  not  then  considered  as  within  the 
territorial  limits  of  the  town  of  Salisbury. 

For  at  least  five  years  after  the  settlement  of  the  town 
there  was  no  legally  established  ferry  across  the  Merrimack, 
although  it  is  probable  that  transportation  by  the  way  of 
Carr's  Island  w^as  somewhat  frequent,  as  "  the  highway  lead- 
ing to  the  ferry "  is  mentioned  in  the  records  as  early  as 
1639. 

At  a  county  court  held  at  Ipswich  on  the  24th  of  Septem- 
ber, 1644,  the  following  order  was  passed  :  — 


■Kl)mm.m»^  - 


•■■> 

Q 

2 

i 

< 

4^^••*• 

1 

W 

i 

THE    FERRY  AT  CARR\S   ISLAND  57 

(jcorge  Carr  is  appointed  to  keepe  y^'  ferrie  att  Salisbury  att  the  Hand 
where  hee  now  dwelleth  for  y^'  space  of  three  years,  Pvided  y*  hee  finde 
a  sufifitient  horse  boate.  &  giue  diligent  attendance. 

The  ferries  are  as  followeth  vnder :  — 


ffor  a  Man  p''sent  pay 

for  a  horse 

81 

for  great  cattle 

^^ 

Calues  &  Yearlins 

3" 

goates 

2'1 

hofifg-s 

3-^ 

If  p'sent  pay  bee  not  made  y*  hee  must  booke  any  ferries,  then  a 
penny  a  peece  more.  If  any  bee  forced  to  swimme  over  a  horse  for 
want  of  a  great  boate,  they  shall  pay  nothing. —  Massachusetts  Archives^ 
volume  121,  page  i. 

The  provisions  of  this  order  authorize  the  collection  of 
certain  sums  for  ferriage,  if  paid  cash  down  ;  but,  if  they  are 
charged  on  account,  "then  a. penny  a  peece  more." 

Before  the  expiration  of  the  three  years'  limit  named  in 
the  grant  cited  abo\e  Tristram  Coffin,  of  Newbury,  was 
authorized  by  the  General  Court  to  keep  a  ferry  on  the  New- 
bury side,  "  when  the  interest  of  George  Carr  shall  be  deter- 
mined "  ;  that  is  to  sa)',  when  the  rights  and  privileges  con- 
ferred by  the  county  court  at  Ipswich  shall  have  terminated. 
The  order  adopted  May  26,  1647,  reads  as  follows:  — 

The  Co'te  doth  grant  Tristram  Coffin  to  keepe  an  ordinary  at  New- 
bur}-,  &  to  retayle  wine,  paying  according  to  ord'' ;  &  also  he  is  granted 
liberty  to  keepe  a  ferry  on  Newberry  side,  oV  Merrimack,  when  the 
interest  of  George  Carr  shall  be  determined,  &  Georg  Carr  shall  have 
lib''ty  to  keepe  his  boate  going  on  Salsberry  side. — Massachusetts  Colony 
/records,  volume  2,  page  194. 

There  being  some  imcertainty  in  regard  to  the  jurisdiction 
of  the  General  Court  over  several  islands  in  the  river,  a 
formal  petition  was  presented  to  the  deputies ;  and  under 
date  of  May  10,  1648,  it  is  recorded  :  — 

Upon  the  petition  of  the  towne  of  Salsberry  the  Co'te  conceive  it 
meete   that  the  little  iland  in  Merrimack  be  reserved   for  the  Countrves 


5  8  OULD    XEIVBURY 

use.  &  the  greater  iland  to  be  given  to  the  towne  of  Salsberry.  reserv- 
ing a  sufficient  high  way  for  passage  of  men  &  cattle  &:  that  the  towne 
ma\-  have  liberty  to  keepe  a  ferry  on  their  side. —  Massachusetts  Colony 
Records,  volume  2.  page  246. 

The  little  island  referred  to  in  the  abox'e  order  was  after- 
ward called  "  Ramni  Iland "  ;  and  the  greater  island,  o\er 
w^hich  a  highway  was  reser\ed  for  the  passage  of  men  and 
cattle,  is  now  known  as  Carr's  Island.  It  does  not  appear 
from  the  records  of  the  General  Com-f  that  the  right  of  ])ass- 
ing  to  and  fro  over  this  island  has  ever  been  siu'rendered  ; 
and,  undoubtedly,  this  old  roadway  is  still  under  the  control 
of  the  State,  l^he  marks  and  bounds  that  made  it  a  well- 
defined  public  way  are  now  nearly  obliterated,  but  its  general 
direction  and  most  prominent  features  can  still  be  pointed 
out.  A  few  granite  posts  set  here  and  there  along  the  line 
of  this  old  thoroughfare  are  needed,  in  order  to  insure  the 
identification  and  preservation  of  this  imj^ortant  historic  land- 
mark. 

Jime  29,  1648,  the  town  of  Salisbury  appointed  a  commit- 
tee to  attend  to  the  "settling  of  the  ffeny,"  as  provided  for 
by  the  vote  passed  by  the  General  Court  in  the  preceding 
month  of  May.  On  the  i8th  of  December  following  "it  was 
Ordered  that  M''  Carr  should  have  the  ffery  for  fourteene 
yeares  ;  uppon  the  termes  agreed  on  by  those  men  appointed 
to  dispose  of  the  fferry." 

Having  thus  secured  the  e.\clusi\e  right  to  maintain  a  ferr\" 
on  the  Salisbury  side,  Carr  ne.\t  ap})lied  to  the  General  Court 
for  the  privilege  of  ferrying  passengers  to  and  from  the  New- 
bury side  of  the  island,  as  he  had  formerly  been  allowed  to 
do.  This  request  was  not  granted  ;  but,  nexertheless,  the 
court  \'oted  May  2,  1649:  — 

In  answere  to  the  petition  of  CJeorge  Carr.  the  Co'te  doth  conceive  it 
meete  that  the  petitioner  sliall  liave  the  free  use  ol  Kaiii  Hand  so  long 
as  he  doth  or  shall  dilgentlv  attend  Ov  serve  the  country,  in  keeping  of 
the  ferrv  between  Salslierrv  i.\:  Xewlierrv:  i.\;  liiierty  is  granted  him.  as 
occasion  shall  pesent,  to  fetch  any  passingers  from  Newberry  side.  & 
Mr.  Coffin  hath  liberty  to  fetch  any  pa.ssingers  also  from  Salsberry  side. 


THE    FERRY  AT   CARR'S   ISLAND  59 

as  occasion  shall  be,  that  so  the  country  may  surely  be  served. —  Massa- 
chusetts Colony  Records,  volume  2,  page  265. 

Evidently,  this  decision  was  not  satisfactory  ;  for  Mr.  Carr 
presented  a  second  petition  during  the  same  session  of  the 
court,  asking  for  exclusive  control  of  the  ferry.  Final  action 
upon  this  petition  was  postponed  until  the  next  meeting  of 
the  "  Courte  at  Salisbury,"  which  was  duly  authorized  to  de- 
termine and  settle  the  question  as  "  may  best  tend  to  the 
ease  of  the  country." 

Nearly  a  year  later  the  troublesome  question  was  disposed 
of  by  the  following  decree  of  the  court,  entered  at  Salisbury, 
April  9.  1650  :  — 

Whereas  by  an  ord''  of  y*-'  Gen"  Court  bearing  date  May,  1649,  It  is 
left  to  \''  Determination  of  y'^'  next  Court  to  be  held  at  Salisbury  for  y'^' 
selling  &  Disposing  of  y'^'  ferry  there,  according  to  vv'^'^  order  y*^  said 
Court  at  Salisbury  Doth  thus  Dispose  of  y*^  said  Ferry,  first  y'  It  shall 
Remain  as  it  is  att  this  present  in  disposeing  of  y<?  Town  of  Newburv  & 
y*^  town  of  Salisbury  for  some  space  of  time,  viz.  Until  there  be  a  Bridge 
made  over  from  y'*  main  to  Mr.  Carr's  Island  over  y*^  northernmost 
branch  of  Merrimack  River.  And  Whereas  George  Carr  doth  here 
undertake  &  Promise  in  y<=  Open  Court  for  himselfe,  his  heirs  & 
assigns,  to  make  a  sufficient  bridge  five  foot  wide,  with  three  strong 
Rails  on  either  side  from  one  end  of  y*"  Bridge  to  y''  other,  w"^  Sufficient 
Causways  in  height  above  y*^  high  water  mark,  Joyning  to  Each  end  of 
y*"  Bridge  y*^  Causeways  not  E.xceeding  Six  Rods  at  both  (ends)  That 
passengers  may  pass  &  Repass  drie  to  &  from  ^  Bridge ;  and  y*^ 
same  Bridge  y  said  George  Carr,  his  heirs  &  assigns,  shall  continually 
maintain  in  good  Repair,  for  &  in  Consideration  whereof  this  Court  doth 
settle  &  Dispose  y*^  whole  ferry  on  both  sides  y''  River  to  y<^  s'^  George 
Carr,  his  heirs  &  assigns,  from  such  time  as  y<=  said  Bridge  shall  be  Built 
&  Finished  &  so  long  as  it  is  sufficiently  maintained  &  repair'd  &  no 
Longer.  Provided  always  that  in  case  y'^  bridge  be  in  Decay  (20) 
days  without  being  repair'd  if  y^  season  will  permit,  notice  being  given 
him  under  y''  hand  of  some  Magistrate  of  y^'  Decay  of  it.  Then  the  said 
Ferry  shall  return  again  to  Newbury  &  Salisbury  as  it  is  now  at  present. 
And  y<^  s''  George  Carr  Doth  farther  Engage  himselfe,  his  heirs  and 
assigns,  to  keep  sufficient  boats  for  y*-'  use  of  y«  Ferry  While  at  any  time 
y^'  Bridge  shall  be  in  repairing  as  before  Express't,  and  at  all  times  for 
y''  southermost  ferry  so  as  no  Damage  Come  to  y*^  Country  nor  any 
particular  person  by  y^'  Default  of  him  y<^'  said  George  Carr,  his  servants 
or  Tenants,  &  for  the  prizes   as   it  was  last  Concluded  of  at   Ipswich 


6o  OULD    XFAVBCRY 

Court.  It  is  left  to  three  magistrates  to  (Jive  Longer  time  for  v^  repair- 
ing of  it  tlian  is  above  Expressed,  if  they  shall  think  fit :  and  in  case 
y^'  bridge  fall  downe,  then  y'^^  ferry  shall  return  as  at  present  to  Newbury 
&  Salisburv  untill  such  time  as  y'^  bridge  be  built  again. 

(JEORGE    CaRR. 

Tho.   Bradbury. 
Entered  in  y*^  County  Court  records 
for  Norfolke,  page  13"^ 

Tho.  BRADr.rRV,  Tv'rr'.* 

The  capital  and  labor  necessary  for  the  building  of  a  float- 
ing bridge  of  the  dimensions  given  in  the  decree  of  the  court 
were  not  easil)^  procured  in  those  early  da}'s.  The  work 
seems  to  have  progressed  slowly,  but  steadily,  until  early  in 
the  summer  of  1655,  when  the  bridge  was  nearly  completed. 
Opposition  to  the  enterprise  found  expression  in  the  shape  of 
a  petition  to  the  General  Court  setting  forth  the  difficulties 
and  dangers  that  might  result  from  the  proposed  obstruction 
to  the  free  navigation  of  the  river;  and  May  29,  1655,  the 
court  passed  the  following  order  :  — 

In  ans'"  to  the  peticoii  of  seuerall  inhabitants  of  Salisbury,  itt  is 
ordered  that  the  bridge  George  Carr  is  building  &  providing  for  one 
part  of  Sallisbury  Riuer,  being  in  such  forwardnes.  should  contineu. 
and  may  be  improved  for  publicke  good,  and  the  ne.xt  County  Court  at 
Hampton  is  heereby  impowered  to  order  the  same,  so  that  the  transpor- 
tacon  of  the  peticoiiers  may  be  obstructed  as  litle  as  maybe,  and  that 
the  sajd  bridge  be  lett  fly  for  the  month  of  .September,  that  so  the  peti- 
coners  may  haue  due  tjme  to  transport  theire  hay  \v"^out  anv  lett  or  hin- 
derance  during  that  tjme ;  and  the  sajd  George  Carre  is  to  keepe  a 
sufiicyent  ferry  boate  on  that  side. — Massachusetts  Colony  Records. 
volume  14.  Part  i..  page  231. 

When  the  bridge  was  C()mi)leted,  Mr.  Carr  inxited  a  com- 
mittee of  his  townsmen  to  inspect  the  work,  and  report  upon 
the  same;  and,  accordingl}',  June  29,  K^^SS,  this  committee 
signed  a  certificate  stating  thai  the  bridge  "  was  finished 
according  to  the  coxenant  made  between  the  comt  held  at 
.Salisbur}-  and  tlie  said  (ieorge  Carr."  A  few  clays  later 
the   ])resi(ling   magistrate  of   the   court  of   old  Norfolk  coimt}', 

VSiiffulk  Cniirt  Files. 


THE    FERRY  AT   CARR'S   ISLAND  6 1 

on  his  way  liome  tcj  Ipswich,  with  his  attendants  all  mounted, 
passed  over  this  bridge,  and  were  entertained  at  the  house  of 
Mr.  Carr  on  the  island.  Previous  to  his  departure  the  fol- 
lowing certificate  was  prepared  and  signed  by  the  judge:  — 

5"'  month.  5"'  day.  1655. —  Upon  this  day  upon  my  return  from 
the  courts  of  Dover  and  York,  I  came  with  divers  other  horsemen  that 
were  with  me  over  the  float  bridge  of  Merrimack  River  which  George 
Carr  hath  built,  and  I  find  it  fully  sufficient  for  passage  both  for  man 
and  horses,  so  that  the  former  order  of  Salisbury  Court  in  reference  to 
the  bridge  to  be  built  by  the  said  George  Carr,  and  especially  the  last 
order  of  the  General  Court  considered,  I  do  clearly  apprehend  that  the 
usual  benefit  of  the  ferry  on  either  side  doth  of  right  henceforth  belong 
unto  him.  and,  therefore,  the  other  ferryman  is  hereby  required  to 
cease  his  ferriage  usuallv  unless  he  be  emploved  bv  the  said  George 
Carr  and  for  his  use.  I  conceive  it  is  not  amiss  that  you  acquaint  the 
selectmen  of  Newbury  and  Salisbury  with  this,  that  so  they  may 
be  assistant  to  the  Court  order  if  occasion  shall  require. 

Samuel  Svmonds. 

This  official  announcement  was  evidently  an  event  of 
unusual  interest  and  importance.  If  the  little  group  of 
spectators  gathered  there,  the  solemn  judge  with  his  retinue 
of  mounted  horsemen,  and  the  bridge  itself  floating  lazily 
on  the  tide,  could  be  reproduced  on  canvas,  the  picture 
would  be  stately  and  imposing.  Possibly  some  competent 
and  skilful  artist,  in  days  that  are  to  come,  will  e.xalt  and 
glorify  that  picturesque  scene,  and  restore  from  out  the  dim 
and  shadowy  past  the  life  and  pageantry  of  that  memorable 
midsummer  morning. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  this  bridge,  built  in  compliance 
with  the  terms  imposed  by  the  General  Court,  was  probably 
the  first  floating  bridge  in  America.  Certainly,  no  other 
equal  to  it  in  size  and  importance  is  mentioned  in  the  early 
colonial  records  ;  and  its  prompt  acceptance  by  the  county 
court  must  have  been  a  source  of  gratification  and  pride 
to  the  builder.  •  The  success  of  the  undertaking  was  assured  ; 
and,  as  a  token  of  their  appreciation  of  Mr.  Carr's  services  to 
the  country,  the  General  Court  passed  the  following  vote  :  — 


62  OULD   XEWBURY 

This  Court  doth  ('.rant  the  Inheritance  of  Ramme  Hand  to  ]\r 
Georg  Carr  &  his  heirs  for  euer.  the  Magists  haue  past  this  \v"'  Ref- 
erence to  the  Consent  of  theire  brethren,  the  deput^  hereto  : 

22  November  1655  Edwaru  Rawsox.  Secret. 

Consented  to  l)y  the  deputyes 

William  Torrev,  Cleric. 

In  October,  1660,  the  bridge  was  exempted  from  assess- 
ment for  the  "  County  and  town  rates,"  and  Mr.  Carr  was  also 
•granted  "one  hundred  &  fiffty  acres  of  land  to  enjoy  during 
the  bridg"  standing  &  its  being  maintained."  In  the  month 
of  May  following  (May  22,  1661)  an  explanatory  order  was 
passed,  fixing  the  valuation  at  which  the  bridge  should  be 
assessed  for  the  maintenance  of  the  ministry. 

The  order  reads  as  follows  :  — 

Att  the  request  of  AI''  George  Carre,  as  an  expHcation  of  this  Courts 
graunt  to  him  in  October,  1660,  this  Court  declareth  that  the  liberty 
graunted  him  of  being  rate  free  for  tlie  bridge  ouer  Salisbury  Riuer  is 
to  be  understood  &  taken  as  freeing  him  from  any  tax  relating  to  toune 
&  country  by  reason  of  the  benefitt  that  accrueth  to  him  from  the  sajd 
ferry  &  bridge,  the  maintenance  to  the  ministrye  there  excepted,  so  as 
the  bridge  be  not  accounted  in  value  to  that  rate  aboue  thirty  pounds. 
&  that  the  minister  of  .Salisbury  &  his  family,  from  tjme  to  tjme,  be  ferry 
free  &  that  the  graunt  of  one  hundred  &  fifty  acres  of  land,  during  the 
bridges  standing,  is  and  shall  be  vnderstood  &  taken,  y'  the  sajd  George 
Carre  shall  enjoy  the  propriety  of  one  hundred  &  fifty  afrres  of  land,  to 
him,  his  heires  &  assignes,  vntill  such  time  as  he  or  they  shall  vtterly 
relinquish  or  neglect  the  repaire  and  maintenance  of  the  sajd  l)ridge. — • 
Massachusetts  Colony  Records,  volume  4,  Part  ii.,  page  5. 

In  the  month  of  October,  1668,  Mr.  Carr  ]K'titioned  the 
General  Coint,  asking  that  the  ferry  recentl)'  established  be- 
tween Newbury  and  Amesbin-)',  without  his  knowledge  and 
consent,  should  be  abolished,  or  ])laced  in  his  care  antl  control, 
in  compliance  with  the  agreement  made  at  the  .Salisbu.r_\-  court 
in  1650.  In  answer  to  this  jx'tition  the  de])Uties  advised  the 
county  coiu"t  "to  confer  the  keeping  ot  the  new  ten-\-  upon 
the  said  Cai-i",  he  kee])ing  of  It  upon  as  equall  termes  as  an_\' 
othei"  will  doe." 


THE    FERRY  AT   CARR\S   ISLAXD  63 

The  next  year  (Alay  19,  1669)  the  General   Court  passed 
tlie  following"  order  :  — 

In  ansf  to  the  petition  of  George  Carr.  the  Court,  having  heard  his 
allegations  &  pervsed  seuerall  Court  orders  referring  to  the  Case,  doe 
declare  that  the  peticoner  ought  to  haue  his  couenant  made  good, 
according  to  the  order  of  Salisbury  Court,  9"'",  1650.  to  haue  the  whole 
dispose  of  the  sajd  fferry  on  both  sides  of  the  rvver.  there  bein^--  no 
Complaint  of  deficjency  of  the  bridge,  or  of  Carr"s  attendance  by  boat 
or  otheruise.  but.  contrarywise,  desires  from  from  seuerall  selectmen 
of  the  continuance  thereof  in  his  hands,  &  therefore  can  see  no  ground 
to  allow  of  the  setting  vp  of  another  fferry  there,  but  judge  liberty  may 
be  granted  to  sett  a  ferry  or  ferryes  in  other  places  on  that  riuer.  vse 
full  for  the  country,  the  said  George  Carr  having  the  refusall  of  keepino- 
the  fferry  at  or  about  Powwaws  Riuer,  he  keeping  &  attending  on  it 
for  the  ease  of  the  country.  &  on  the  same  termes  that  it  was  granted 
to  him  that  now  keeps  it.  by  order  of  the  County  Court  at  Hampton 
or  Salisbury,  liberty  of  magistrates  &  deputjes  to  passe  free,  as  it  was 
by  law  setled  before  the  agreement  the  sajd  Car  made  about  the  sajd 
fferry.  which  he  accepted  not  then  ?ig?:\\\%1.—  Massachusetts  Colony 
Records,   volume  4.   Part   ii..  page  429. 

In  1670,  Mr.  Carr  again  applied  to  the  General  Coint  for 
permission  to  keep  the  ferry  between  Newbiu-y  and  the  new 
settlement  at  Amesbury,  and  also  requested  that  "two  small 
Islands,  Called  by  the  name  of  Deere  Hand  and  Kagle 
Hand,"  should  be  granted  him  in  part  payment  for  one 
hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  land  previously  voted.  The  court 
considered  that  the  first  part  of  this  petition  had  already 
been  settled,  and  postponed  action  in  regard  to  the  grant  of 
the  islands  named  until  the  town  of  Salisbury  could  be  heard 
in  relation  thereto. 

Two  years  later  (May  15,  1672)  the  subject  was  finally 
disposed  of  by  the  following  order  : 

In  ans>-  to  the  petition  of  the  inhabitants  of  Salisbury,  as  also  that 
of  M--  George  Carrs.  it  is  ordered  that  Deare  Island  and  Eagle  Island, 
petitioned  for  as  to  the  propriety,  remajne  the  countrys,  the  timber  & 
trees  to  be  for  Georg  Carr  for  the  vse  of  the  bridg,  till  this  Court  take 
further  order.  The  herbage  of  them,  w'"  lil^erty  to  cutt  doune  brush 
&  vnderwood  to  make  pasture  for  sheepe.  to  be  to  &  for  the  vse  of 
the  sajd  toune  of  'S^W^huxx.— Massachusetts  Colony  Records,  volume  4, 
Part  ii..  page  530. 


64  OULD   iVEWBUKY 

The  importance  of  keepiiii;"  the  ferry  estabHshed  at 
Carr's  Island  open  for  the  transportation  of  troops  and  ammu- 
nition during  the  progress  of  King  Philip's  war  was  well 
understood  and  carefully  prox'ided  for  b)'  the  following  order, 
passed  b}'  the  (General  Court  May  5,  1676  :  — 

In  answer  to  the  request  of  (ieorge  Carr,  Sen.  who  keepes  the  ferry 
over  Merrimack  Riuer,  the  securing  whereof  for  the  Comon  passage  of 
poasts,  souldiers,  <S:  travellers,  &  variety  of  other  occasions,  is  of  very 
great  concerment  vnto  this  colony,  which,  if  neglected,  may  proove 
eminently  pjudicial  <X;  dangerous  to  the  country  in  generall,  for  pre- 
venting whereof  it  is  heereby  ordered  by  this  Court  that  the  sajd  Carr. 
shipwright,  shall  haue  a  garrison,  &;  the  full  number  not  exceeding 
seven  men,  free  from  impresse,  prouided  the  sajd  Carr  doe  mainteyne 
his  garrison  &  the  sajd  men  at  his  oune  propper  &  peculiar  charge, 
and  those  seven  men  be  constantly  kept  for  the  security  of  the  ferry, 
&  the  names  of  those  persons  so  improoved  to  be  returned  in  to  the 
majo''  of  that  county. — Massac /ii/seffs  Colouv  Records,  volume  5.  page  8y. 

At  this  time,  and  for  many  )'ears  after,  the  onl)'  route  from 
Boston  to  the  eastern  frontier  was  by  way  of  this  ferry  at 
Carr's  Island.  Largely  patronized  by  the  settlers  in  this 
immediate  \-icinity,  by  soldiers  engaged  in  \arious  expeditions 
against  the  Indians,  and  b)'  traders  and  tra\'ellers  of  every 
description,  the  income  derived  from  "the  great  ferry  on 
both  sides  of  the  island,  and  the  bridge  and  privileges  there- 
unto belonging,"  rapidly  increased  the  estate  of  Mr.  Carr. 
At  his  death,  which  occurred  A])ril  4,  1682,  his  real  and  per- 
sonal property  was  valued  at  nearly  fourteen  himdred  pounds, 
—  a  very  large  estate  for  those  early  days. 

In  the  division  of  this  propert}',  made  b}'  a  committee  ap- 
pointed by  the  county  court,  antl  recorded  Sept.  23,  1683, 
in  volume  4,  jiages  128-130  of  the  Probate  Records,  the 
bridge  and  ferr)'  were  assigned  to  Richard  and  James  Carr, 
sons  of  the  intestate,  George  Carr. 

The)'  continued  in  undistui"bed  ]:)ossession  for  several 
}'ears  ;  l)ut  the  gi'owlh  of  tlic  town  of  Newbur\'  in  a  south- 
easterl}'  dii'cction,  and  the  remoteness  ot  tlic  lei'rx'  trom  the 
direct  line  of  traxel,  led  Captain  John  Mai'ch,  who  had  opened 
a  tavern  near  the  i-i\er  opposite   to    Ring's    Island,  to   petition 


THE    FERRY    AT    CARR'S    ISLAXD  65 

Sir  Edmund  Andros,  recently  appointed  g'overnor-in-chief 
of  all  New  England,  for  the  privilege  of  setting  up  a  ferry 
near  his  place.  This  petition  was  read  in  council  Sept.  23, 
1687,  and  was  finall}'  referred  to  the  justices  of  the  peace 
in  the  county  of  r2ssex,  with  instructions  to  report  to  the 
council  "  what  they  conceive  to  be  most  suitable  and  conven- 
ient for  Travellers  and  the  publique  service  of  the  Country." 

Notwithstanding  the  earnest  protestation  of  James  Carr, 
acting"  for  himself  and  his  brother  Richard,  the  committee 
reported  in  fa\'or  of  granting  the  petition  ;  and  the  governor 
and  council,  at  a  meeting  held  at  the  council  chamber  in 
Roston,  Oct.  25,  1687,  passed  an  order  approving  this  deci- 
sion, and  providing  that  John  March  should  have  the  privi- 
lege of  keeping  the  new  ferry  in  case  James  Carr  should 
refuse  to  undertake  it. 

As  the  building  of  a  new  causeway  and  the  providing  of 
boats  for  the  accommodation  of  passengers  would  necessarily 
invoh'e  a  large  expenditure  (jf  mone}',  and  the  care  and  man- 
agement of  the  new  ferry  would  be  inconvenient  and  burden- 
some to  Mr.  Carr,  he  did  not  promptly  accept  the  offer  ;  and 
Captain  John  March  was  authorized  to  take  charge  of  the 
new  enterprise  and  carry  the  proposed  plans  into  effect. 

Not  satisfied  with  these  proceedings,  and  still  claiming 
that  he  was  entitled  to  certain  exclusive  rights  and  privileges 
under  the  contract  made  by  the  General  Court  in  1650  with 
George  Carr,  he  appealed  to  the  governor  and  council  to 
aid  and  protect  him  in  the  assertion  of  these  rights.  The 
records  show  that  this  petition  was  taken  into  consideration 
and  finally  acted  upon  May  20,  1691  ;  and  the  petitioner  was 
"referred  to  seek  his  remedy  by  Course  of  Comon  Eaw." 

Eong  and  tedious  litigation  followed,  with  varying  success 
to  each  of  the  contestants,  until  at  length  the  deputies,  in 
General  Court  assembled  Dec.  5,  1693, 

A'oted  that  all  suits  and  actions  now  depending  between  any  persons 
and  the  said  Capt.  John  March,  referring  to  any  matter  or  controversy 
about  the  ferr)-  or  ferries  over  the  river  of  Merrymack,  between  New- 
bury and  Salisbury,  be  suspended;  and  that  the  court  of  Salem  be 
directed  to  continue  any  action  or  actions  so  depending  there   until  the 


66  OULD   XEWBURY 

general  assembly  have  determined  and  resolved  upon  the  settlement  of 
the  said  ferry  or  ferries ;  and  that  the  heirs  of  George  Carr  be  notified 
that  they  may  appear  on  the  sixth  day  after  the  begining  of  the  next 
sessions  of  the  general  assembly,  and  there  offer  what  plea  and  ol)jec- 
tions  they  have  to  make  against  the  confirmation  of  the  said  ferry  to 
the  said  Capt.  John  March. 

Those  who  are  interested  in  the  details  of  this  prolonged 
controversy  will  find  in  the  notes  to  volume  VII.  of  the  Acts 
and  Resolves  of  the  Province  of  Massachusetts  l-?ay,  pai;es 
398  to  409  inclusive,  a  full  and  particular  account  of  the 
proceedings  up  to  this  date.  In  volume  VII  I.,  appendi.x  W ., 
of  the  same  work,  soon  to  be  published,  will  be  found  addi- 
tional papers  and  documents  relating  to  the  final  settlement 
of  the  case,  l^y  the  kind  permissicMi  of  Abner  C.  Goodell,  Jr., 
Esq.,  who  has  the  editorial  care  and  supervision  of  this  work, 
the  most  important  of  these  papers  have  been  copied,  and  are 
incorporated  in  this  sketch.  They  tell  the  story  so  clearl}"  and 
concisely  that  no  words  of  explanation  will  be  required. 

For  more  than  twenty  years  after  the  General  Court  sus- 
pended the  suit  brought  against  Captain  John  March  by  the 
heirs  of  (jcorge  Carr,  no  definite  action  seems  to  have  been 
taken  by  either  side  for  the  settlement  of  the  controversy. 
In  December,  171 5,  Richard  Carr  presented  a  petition,  as 
one  of  the  heirs  of  George  Carr,  again  urging  his  claims  to 
the  exclusive  rights  and  privileges  granted  by  the  court  in 
1650.  This  petition,  and  the  order  of  the  court  thereon, 
reads  as  follows  :  — 

ORDER  appointing  A  HEARING  at  the  next  SESSION  of  the 
GENERAL  Court  ON  the  PETITION  of  RICHARD  Carr  OF 
SALIS15URV  praying  a  SETTLEMENT  of  the  FERRY  over 
tlic  LOWER  part  of  Mcrrimac  river  and  for  -SICRA'ING  the 
TOWNS  of  NEWBURY  and  SALISBl'RY  with  A  copy  of 
SAID    I'ETLI'IOX. 

I'l'ox  i<i:.\i)ix(;  the  petition  of  Richard  Carr  of  Salislnny  in  tlie 
count V  of  F-sscx,  mariner,  importing  that  about  the  vear  16S7  the  then 
Governour  and  Council  were  pleas'd  to  grant  liberty  to  Lieu.  Col" 
March  to  keep  a  new  ferry  over  tlie  lower  jjart  ol"  MerrinKuk  river  be- 
tween Newbury  and   Salisbury,  iluriiig  tiieir  pleasure,  w''   I'erry  has  been 


THE    FERRY   AT    CARR'S    ISLAXD  67 

since  continued  and  of  late  setled  by  the  quarter  sessions  of  the  said 
county  upon  the  towns  of  Newbury  and  Salisbury,  both  which  are  in 
prejudice  of  a  o^rant  formerly  made  by  the  General  Court  to  M''  George 
Car,  the  petitioner's  father,  and  have  been  and  now  are  very  injurious 
to  his  heirs,  and  humbly  prays  that  justice  may  be  done  him,  to  which 
end  he  offers  the  following  particulars,  viz*,  that  there  was  by  order  of 
the  general-court  a  covenant  made  between  the  court  of  Salisbury  and 
M""  (jeorge  Car,  the  petitioner's  father,  about  building  a  float  bridge 
over  Merrimack  River,  &c.,  and  confirm'd  by  the  general  court  anno 
1650  and  1660,  and  therein  an  ancient  grant  of  the  whole  ferry  or  ferrys 
between  Newbury  and  Salisbury  was  conditionally  made  to  the  said 
Car  and  his  heirs ;  y'  the  covenant  on  the  said  Car's  part  was  fulfilled 
to  the  satisfaction  of  all,  as  appears  not  only  on  record,  but  also  in  that 
there  was  never  any  objection  made  against  him,  nor  can  there  be  justly 
at  this  time ;  that  in  fulfilling  this  covenant  the  said  Car  was  at  more 
than  three  hundred  pounds  expence  in  first  building  the  bridge  and 
other  accommodations  for  the  ferry,  and  that  in  the  settlement  of  the 
said  Car's  estate  this  grant  and  privilege  was  apportioned  and  apprais'd 
to  his  heirs  James  and  Richard  (the  petitioner)  at  near  four  hundred 
pounds;  that  the  granting  or  settling  a  ferry  between  Newbury  and 
Salisbury  on  any  others  was  a  breach  of  covenant  on  the  countrey's 
part,  and  contrarv  to  the  intention  and  meaning  of  the  covenanters  on 
both  sides,  and  a  manifest  illusion  to  said  Car  and  his  heirs ;  that  the 
said  Car  would  not  have  been  at  so  great  a  charge,  had  he  thought  that 
a  ferry  but  a  little  below  him  would  have  ever  been  granted  to  any 
other,  which  would  spoil  both  the  custom  and  profitt  of  that  which  was 
attended  with  so  great  a  charge,  as  it  hitherto  hath  been,  almost  to  the 
undoing  of  us  to  whose  lot  this  part  of  our  father's  estate  fell,  who  for 
being  kept  out  of  our  right  are  damnified  at  least  fifty  and  sixty  pounds 
a  year ;  that  it  cannot  be  supposed  the  general-court  made  any  reserva- 
tion to  the  contrary,  but  that  the  true  intent  and  meaning  of  their  grant 
and  covenant  was  the  said  Car  and  his  heirs  should  have  the  sole  bene- 
fit of  ferry  or  ferrys  between  the  two  towns  aforesaid,  w'^  is  evident,  in 
that  the  other  ferry  below  was  put  down  as  soon  as  the  bridge  was 
finished,  and  that,  when  another  ferry  was  thought  needful  some  miles 
above  the  ferry,  the  general  court  judged  it  just  to  give  the  said  Car 
the  offer  and  grant  of  it  anno  1669.  and  at  the  same  time  declared  it 
was  needful  so  to  do  to  make  good  their  ancient  covenant  with  him. 
and  that,  if  any  other  ferrys  should  be  thought  useful  for  the  country 
within  the  aforesaid  limits,  the  s''  Car  should  have  the  refusal  of  keeping 
them ;  that,  when  the  lower  ferry  aforesaid  was  first  sett  up.  the  offer  of 
it  was  never  made  to  M"'  Car's  proper  heirs  of  that  right,  neither  had 
they  both  the  refusal  of  it ;  that  what  ever  was  proposed  to  the  peti- 
tioner about  it  was  not  refuted,  that  he  only  objected  against  some 
proposals  which  he  supposed  he  had  just  reason  for,  as  being  contrary 


68  OCLD    NKWBCRY 

to  the  ancient  grant  and  covenant;  that  tlie  first  grant  or  permit  to  keep 
the  lower  ferry  aforesaid  to  Coll.  March  was  only  during  pleasure;  that 
it  can  be  no  prejudice  or  detriment  to  the  country  nor  any  person  what- 
soever now  to  grant  and  settle  it  on  them  to  whom  it  of  right  belongs : 
that  the  late  settlement  by  the  sessions  of  a  ferrv  at  the  same  place 
upon  the  two  towns  aforesaid  was  done  without  the  least  offer  to  either 
of  y'^  heirs  or  the  said  Car  or  giving  them  any  opportunity  of  setting 
forth  their  right  or  speaking  for  themselves,  and  contrarj-  to  the  grant 
and  covenant  according  to  which  the  ferry  was  not  to  be  kept  by  New- 
burv  and  Salisbury  till  the  aforesaid  bridge  fell  down  and  then  no 
longer  to  continue  so,  but  till  it  should  be  rebuilt  by  the  said  Car  or 
his  heirs ;  that  it  is  of  necessity  that  that  ferry  should  be  kept  up. 
where  and  for  which  the  bridge  was  built  for  the  publick  benefit  of  the 
countrey.  because  it  is  impossible  to  keep  or  pass  the  lower  ferry  at  all 
times  and  verv  hazardous  for  a  great  part  of  the  Winter,  tho'  it  may  be 
convenient  in  the  Summer,  when  it  draw  away  all  the  custom  and 
profit  of  the  old  ferry;  that  the  petitioner  supposes  it  just  and  reason- 
able that  he  who  keeps  up  the  old  ferry  of  necessity  for  the  pul)lick 
good  sh''  have  the  benefit  and  profit  of  the  new  ferry.  w'>  is  only  for  the 
conveniency  of  some  persons  and  at  some  times  to  support  and  main- 
tain at  an  extraordinary  charge  y*  which  is  kept  of  necessity ;  that  he 
humbly  offers  these  considerations  to  the  general-court,  humbly  praying 
that  the  aforesaid  ferry  over  the  lower  part  of  Merrimack  river  may  l:>e 
either  wholly  put  down  or  settled  according  to  the  aforesaid  grant  and 
covenant  with  the  said  Car  and  his  heirs,  or  that  the  refusal  of  keeping 
the  same  at  the  same  price  at  which  it  is  now  kept  may  be  given  to 
the  petitioner, — 

Ordered,  that  the  petitioner  serve  the  towns  of  Newbury  and  Salis- 
bury with  a  copy  of  this  petition,  that  they  be  heard  thereupon  before 
this  court,  upon  the  second  Wednesday  of  the  session  of  this  court  in 
May  next,  if  they  have  anything  to  ol)ject  why  the  prayer  thereof 
should  not  be  granted. 

[Approved  December  20,  171  5.] 

Tlie  hearing  appointed  for  the  second  W'echiesday  in  May 
wa.s  ex'idently  postponed  until  Jinie  6.      Lender  date  ot 

June  7.  1716.  The  following  ORDER  pa.ss"d  in  C(H'XC1L.  .\XD 
sent  down  for  CONCURANCE  DECLARED  ujjon  tiie  HKAKINC 
had  yesterday  before  this  COl'RT  upon  the  within  PETITION  of 
Richard  Carr,  THAT  the  setting  of  Marches  Ferry  over  Merrymack 
River  from  Whites  Point  in  Salislnirv  in  the  COUNTN'  of  I'.sse.x  is  no 
infringment  to  anv  former  C.R.W  T  to  C.eorgc  Carr.  Till;  !'l\()\'- 
INCE  having  reserved  to  themsehes  the  1.1  ISICK  TN'  of   Si;'l"  Tl  NC.    up 


THE    FEKKY    AT    CAKR'S    ISLAXD  69 

other  FERRYS  as  should  be  found  needful.  AND  the  PETITION 
being  groundless 

Ordered  that  it  be  dismissed,  UPON  which  the  HOUSE  of  REP- 
RESENT, pass'd  a  non-concurrence,  viz*. 

Resolved  that  Mr.  George  Carr,  his  HEIRS  and  ASSIGNS,  had  a 
RIGHT  to  the  whole  Ferry  on  both  SIDES  of  the  RIVER  between 
Newbury  and  Salisbury  by  VERTUE  of  a  GRANT  of  the  COURT 
at  Salisburv  1650.  being  impowered  by  the  GENERAL  COURT  to 
make  such  GRANT,  \V'\  GRANT  was  confirmed  by  the  GENERAL 
ASSEMBLY  May,  1669,  AND  that  no  Ferrj-  and  Ferrys  were  to  be 
sett  up  without  his  having  the  REFUSAL  of  the  same,  AND  altho 
the  (GENERAL-COURT  reserved  a  LIBERTY  to  themselves  to  order 
a  Ferry  or  Ferrys  to  be  sett  up,  YET  that  the  said  George  Carr  nor 
HIS  HEIRS  never  forfeited  their  RIGHT  by  any  REFUSAL. 

The  next  step  seems  to  have  been  taken  by  Richard  Carr 
in  a  suit  brought  against  Edward  Sargent,  who  had  charge 
of  the  new  ferr)',  in  the  absence  of  Captain  John  March,  wlio 
was  then  engaged  in  the  colonial  service  at  Pemmaquid  and 
elsewhere  ;  but  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas,  held  at  Salem 
June  25,  1 71 7,  dismissed  the  suit. 

Two  months  later  an  action  for  trespass  was  entered  by 
Richard  Carr  and  James  Carr  against  Edward  Sargent,  re- 
turnable at  Court  of  Common  Pleas  at  Newbury  on  the  last 
Monday  of  September.  The  declaration  of  the  writ  was  as 
follows  :  — 

In  a  plea  of  Trespass  on  ye  Case,  For  that  Whereas  the  Great  and 
General  Court  of  this  Province  did  on  May  the  7th.  Anno  Dom  1649, 
by  a  second  motion  of  George  Carr,  late  of  .Salisbury.  dece"d.  and 
ffather  to  the  plant*^  as  relating  to  Carrs  fferry  between  Salisbury  and 
Newbury,  give  order  and  power  to  the  Court  held  at  Salisbury  aboves<i 
to  judge  and  determine  of  s'l  motion  relating  to  s^i  fferry  and  priviledges 
and  to  settle  ye  same.  And  whereas  on  the  9"^  of  the  3  mo  :  Anno 
Dom  1650  the  s"^  Carr  did  settle  and  confirm  unto  ye  s'^  George  Carr. 
his  heirs  and  assignes,  ye  whole  fferry  and  profit  thereof  on  both  sides 
of  Merrimack  River  between  s"!  Towns  of  Newbury  and  Salisbury,  he 
performing  according  to  ye  conditions  set  forth  in  s'^  act  or  order,  which 
conditions  were  performed  by  s'^  Carr.  as  may  appear  by  a  Return  under 
ye  hands  of  Samuel  Symonds,  Esq''  entred  on  Salisbury  Town  Book  of 
Records,  bearing  date  the  5"'  day  of  the  5  mo  :  1655.  and  other  evidences 
as  shall  more  fully  appear.  And  the  s'^  George  Carr  dying  seized  and 
possessed    of    the  s''    Ferry   and   priviledge  setled   and   confirmed   unto 


70  OULD    NEWBURY 

him  as  aboves'i  and  the  same  after  ye  decease  of  ye  s''  Cieo :  Carr 
being  lawfully  setled  upon  the  plant''  as  portion,  as  appears  bv  the 
Division  made  of  ye  Estate  of  ye  aboves'^  George  Carr  dec'  bv  men 
appointed  by  ye  Honoured  Court  at  Ipswich  for  that  business  April 
loth,  1683,  as  namely  Mr.  Caleb  Moody.  M'' Thomas  Noyes.  AT  Nathan- 
ael  Clark  and  M""  Henry  Short,  which  did  then  set  out  to  the  plan'-  the 
aboves'i  fferry  and  priviledges.  yet  notwithstanding  \-e  s"!  Edward  Sar- 
gent, contrary  to  all  the  aboves''  grants  and  settlem'"  of  s''  fferry  and 
priviledges.  did  sometime  in  the  year  1691,  on  or  about  ye  month  of 
Septeml^er,  keep  a  Boat  and  fferry  passengers,  taking  money  for  ve 
same  over  the  said  River  Merrimack  from  the  Warehouse  Point,  so 
called,  in  Newbury  to  Rings'  Island  in  Salisbury,  so  called,  or  near 
thereabouts,  and  continued  so  to  do  until  about  ve  month  of  March. 
1703,  thereby  hindring  the  pi'*-  Richard  Carr  and  James  Carr  of  the 
profits  of  s'l  fferry  and  priviledge,  which  is  to  the  damage  of  ye  s'' 
Richard  Carr  and  James  Carr.  as  they  say.  ye  sum  of  six  hundred 
pounds. 

Judgment  was  given  in  this  case  against  Richard  and  James 
Carr.  They  appealed  to  the  Superior  Court  ;  but,  for  some 
informahty,  the  appeal  was  dismissed,  and  the  General  Court 
was  induced,  June  28,  171 8,  to  pass  the  following  enabling 
act  :  — 

AN  ACT  TO  ENABLE  RICHARD  CARR  cS;  JAMES  CARR 
OF  NEWBURY  TO  BRING  FORWARD  THEIR  APPEAL 
AT  THE  SUPERIOUR  COURT  NEXT  TO  BE  HOLDEN 
AT  SALEM  WITHIN  AND  FOR  THE  COUNTY  OF 
ESSEX  FROM  A  JUDGEMENT  OF  THE  INFERIOUR 
COURT  OF  COMMON  PLEAS  HELD  AT  NEWBURY 
FOR  THE  COUNTY  OF  ESSEX  ON  THE  LAST  TUES- 
DAY IN  SEPTEMBER,  171 7.  IN  AN  ACTION  OF  TRES- 
PASS UPON  THE  CASE  COMMENCED  AGAINST  ED- 
WARD   SERGEANT    OF    NEWBURY. 

\\'iii-:rkas  the  said  Richard  ^:  James  Carr  had  an  Action  of  Trt-spass 
at  an  Inferiour  Court  at  Newbury  in  September.  1717,  against  lOdward 
Sergeant,  when  and  where  Judgement  was  given  in  Bar  against  the  said 
Richard  Carr  and  James  Carr,  from  which  Judgment  the  said  Rich.ard 
Carr  appealed  and  filed  the  Reasons  of  Appeal  according  to  Law  :  But 
by  Mistake  entered  into  the  Bonds  of  A])peal  in  liis  own  Name,  and 
not  jointly  with  the  said  James  Carr.  for  wliicli  Reason  the  said  Carrs 
Appeal  was  dismist. 

Be  it  therefore  Enacted  by  Jiis  Excellency  the  Governottr,  Council  Ss^ 
Representatii'es  in  General  Court  Assembled  and  by  tlie  Authority  of 
tlic  same 


THE    FERRY    AT    CARR'S    ISLAXD  7 1 

that  the  said  Richard  and  James  Carr  be  and  hereby  are  Authorized 
and  Impowered  to  bring  forward  their  Appeal  at  the  Superiour  Court 
of  Judicature  next  to  be  holden  at  Salem  for  &  within  the  Countv  of 
Essex,  any  Mistake  in  the  Bonds  or  Reasons  of  Appeal  notwithstanding ; 
The  former  Judgements  for  Costs  not  to  be  reversed ;  And  the  Judges 
of  the  said  Court  are  herel:)y  Impowered  &  Directed  to  proceed  to 
Tryal  of  the  said  Cause,  Any  Law.  Usage  or  Custom  to  tlie  Contrary 
notwithstanding. 

The  legal  steps  necessary  to  bring  this  appeal  forward  at 
the  Superior  Court,  held  at  Salem,  Dec.  i6,  1718,  were 
promptly  taken  ;  but  at  that  session  of  the  court  the  follow- 
ing letter  was  presented  and  the  adjournment  asked  for  was 
granted  :  — 

To  the  Hon"'  his  Maj'>^  Justices  of  ye  Sup''  Court,  sitting 
at  Salem.  Dec''  i6"\  171S,  by  adjournm'  &c.  to  be 
opened  before  the  Carrs  and  Sargents  case  is  called. 
May  it  please  yo''  Hon''*  That  whereas  Mr.  James  and 
Capt.  Richard  Carr  have  action  before  yo''  Hon''*  against 
Capt.  Edward  Sargent  &c.  and  Capt.  Sargent's  wife,  as  we 
supposed,  being  visited  and  now  siclc  of  ye  small  pox  and 
removed  to  an  outhouse  (to  prevent  the  spreading  of  it 
amongst  us),  and  he  himself  has  never  had  it  vet.  now  it 
keeps  at  a  distance,  yet  he  having  more  than  a  double 
care  for  his  family  at  home,  his  wife  remote  from  him  and 
dare  not  go  near  her  and  two  children  at  Boston,  one  of 
them  sick  of  it.  the  other  we  know  not  how  it  is  with  her, 
we  promised  that  we  would  write  in  his  behalf  and  pray 
a  continuance  of  s''  action  until  next  Mav  Court  at  Ipswich, 
and  yo''  Hon^*  will  greatly  oblige  yo''  petit''*  and  s<'  Capt. 
Sargent,  for  he  dare  not  appear  at  Court,  &c. 

Newbtrv,  Dec  12*'^  1718. 

yo''  Hon''*  most  hum  :  serv*- 

Tho^  Noves 
Copy  exam"^  Jos  :  Woodbridge. 

by  Sami    Tvlev.  Cler.  Hexry  Somersbv. 

Essex,  ss.      Copia  J 'era. 

Exam"!  Stei'H.   Skwall.  CIt'r. 

A  True  Copy  exam''  bv 

Bexja  Rolfe.  Cle?: 


72  OULD    XEIVBUKY 

Essex,  ss 

At  His  Majestys  Superiour  Court  of  Judicature.  Court 
of  Assize  and  General  (joal  Delivery  begun  and  held  at 
Ipswich  for  and  within  the  County  of  Essex  on  the  third 
Tue-sday  of  Mav.  being  the  nineteenth  day  of  the  said 
Month.  Annoq  Dom  1719. 

By  the  H().\<)1"-f-  Samuel  .Sewall,  Esqi^ 

Chief  Justice. 
Bex  J  A   LvxDE 


Addixgtox    T3AVEXPORT    I    EsQ'^s  Justices 
Paul  Dudley 


Edmi>  Ouixcev 


J 


Carr,  &c.      Richard   Carr   and  James   Carr.  both  of  .Salisbury  in  the 
7'.  Co.   of  Essex,  shipwrights,   Appellants,   v.    Cap*    Edward 

.Sargent.  Sargent  of  Newbury  in  the  County  of  Essex,  now.  or  late 
Inholder,  App''^''  From  a  Judgment  of  the  Inferiour  Court 
of  Pleas  holden  at  Newbury  on  September  24"^  171 7. 
where  the  appellants  were  Plant^  and  the  said  Edward 
Sargent  Def  *  *  * 

It  appearing  to  the  Court  by  a  Letter  from  Col"  Thomas 
Noyes,  Joseph  Woodbridge,  and  Henry  .Somersby  Esq'* 
That  the  said  Edward  Sargents'  Family  being  visited  with 
the  Small  pox  he  could  not  attend  the  Court,  whereupon 
the  action  was  continued  unto  this  time.  Both  partys 
E.Kcut"  is.sued  now  appeared,  the  Writ.  Judgment,  Reasons  of  Appeal 
June4"M7i9.  and  all  things  touching  the  same  being  fully  heard  and 
maturely  advised  upon.  It's  Considered  by  the  Court 
That  the  Writ  is  good  and  well  brought,  that  the  Judg- 
ment of  the  Inferiour  Court  h>t  Reversed  and  that  the 
App'^'  Recover  full  Costs  of  both  Courts,  ta.xed  at  Four 
pounds  six  shillings.  .  .  .  Return  on  execution  in  the  case 
of  Richard  Carr  and  James  Carr  t-.v.  Edward  Sargent. 
June  4,  1 719. 

Essex,  ss 

I  have  Recivd  of  the  within  mentioned  Cap*  P2dward 
.Sargant  four  pounds  Eight  shillings  in  monev  in  full  of 
tliis  within  mentioned  Execution  this  twenty-second  day 
of  June,  I  719.  I  say  Recued  by  me  so  tliat  I  Return  this 
ICxecution  satisfyed  in  full  as  attest. 

Bl'.XJ  ^  COKI'.K. 

under  sherilf' 


THE    FERRY  AT   CARR'S   ISLAND  73 

Another  suit,  brought  in  September,  1717,  by  Richard  and 
James  Carr  against  Edward  Sargent  for  damages,  was  prose- 
cuted at  the  Inferior  Court  held  at  Salem  July  14,  1719,  and 
judgment  was  rendered  for  the  defendant  with  costs  of  suit. 
From  this  decision  Richard  and  James  Carr  appealed  to  the 
Superior  Court  held,  by  adjournment,  at  Salem,  Dec.  15, 
1 719,  where  the  former  judgment  was  confirmed;  and  May 
16,  1 72 1,  they  applied  to  the  Superior  Court  held  at  Ipswich 
for  a  review  of  these  proceedings.  The  details  are  given  in 
the  following  transcript  from  the  court  records  :  — 

Essex,  ss. 

At  His  Majesty's  Superiour  Court  of  Judicature, 
Court  of  Assize  and  General  Goal  Delivery  begun  and 
held  at  Ipswich  within  and  for  the  County  of  Essex  on 
the  third  Tuesday  of  May,  being  the  Sixteenth  day  of 
the  said  month,  Annoque  Domini    1721. 

By  the  Hono''''^ 

Samuel  Sewall,  Esqr  Chief  Justice. 

Benjamin  Lynde  1 

Addington   Davenport   I 
Paul  Dudley  "    ■' 

Edmund  Ouincey  J 

Carrs  Richard   Carr  and  James  Carr,  both  of  Salisbury  in  the 

V.  County  of   Essex,  Shipwrights,  Plan'*  v^  Captain  Edward 

Sargeant  Sargeant  of  Newbury  in  the  Said  County  of  Essex,  late 
Innholder,  Defen'  In  a  Plea  of  Review  of  a  Plea  of  Tres- 
pass on  the  Case  Commenced  by  the  Said  Richard  Carr 
and  James  Carr  against  the  Said  Edward  Sergeant  at  the 
Inferiour  Court  of  Common  Pleas  held  at  Newbury  for 
the  Said  County  of  Essex  on  the  last  Tuesdav  of  Septem- 
ber, Anno  I  71  7.  but  Prosecuted  at  the  Inferiour  Court  held 
at  Salem  by  adjournment  July  14"^  1719-  in  the  words 
following,  viz*.  For  that  whereas  the  Great  and  General 
Court  of  this  Province  Did  on  May  7*  Anno  Dom.  1649, 
by  a  Second  motion  of  George  Carr,  late  of  Salisbury,  de- 
ceased, and  father  to  the  Plan'*  as  Relating  to  Carrs  Ferry 
between  Salisbury  and  Newbury,  Give  order  and  Power  to 
the  Court  held  at  Salisbury  abovesaid  to  Judge  and  deter- 
mine of  Said  motion   relating   to    Said    Ferry  and   Privi- 


74  OULD    NKIVBUKY 

ledges  and  to  Settle  the  Same,  and  whereas  on  the  9"'  of 
the  3""'  Anno  Domini  1650  the  Said  Court  did  Settle  and 
Confirm  unto  the  Said  George  Carr,  his  heirs  and  assignes. 
the  whole  f^rry  and  Profits  thereof  on  both  Sides  of 
Merrymack  River  between  Said  Towns  of  Newbury  and 
Salisbury,  he  performing  according  to  the  Conditions  Set 
forth  in  Said  act  or  order,  which  Conditions  were  per- 
formed by  Said  Carr.  as  may  appear  by  a  return  under  the 
hands  of  Samuel  Symonds.  Esq'"  Entred  on  Salisbury 
Town  Book  of  Records,  bearing  date  the  5"'  day  of  the 
5  m"  1655,  and  other  Evidences  as  Shall  more  fully  appear, 
and  the  Said  George  Carr  dying  Seized  and  possessed  of 
the  Said  Ferry  and  Priviledge  Setled  and  Confirmed  to 
him  as  abovesaid,  and  the  Same  after  the  decease  of  the 
Said  George  Carr  being  lawfully  Setled  upon  the  Plan'" 
as  portion,  as  appears  by  the  Division  made  of  the  Es- 
tate of  the  abovesaid  Cieorge  Carr,  deceased,  by  men 
appointed  by  the  Honoured  Court  at  Ipswich  for  that 
business  April  10"'  1683,  as  namely  iVP'  Caleb  Moody. 
M""  Thomas  Noyes.  M''  Nathaniel  Clark  and  M""  Henry 
Short,  which  did  then  Sett  out  to  the  Plan''*  the  abovesaid 
Ferry  and  Priviledges,  yet  notwithstanding  the  Said  Ed- 
ward Sergeant,  Contrary  to  all  the  abovesaid  Grants  and 
Settlements  of  the  Said  Ferry  and  Priviledges,  did  Some- 
time in  the  Year  1691,  on  or  about  the  month  of  Septem- 
ber, keep  a  Boat  and  Ferry  Passengers,  taking  money  for 
the  Same,  over  the  Said  River  Merrymack  from  the  ware- 
house point.  So  Called,  In  Newbury  to  Rings  Island  in 
Salisbury,  So  Called,  or  near  thereabouts,  and  Continued 
So  to  do  until  about  the  month  of  March,  1703,  thereby 
hindering  the  Plan'^  Richard  Carr  and  James  Carr  of  the 
Profits  of  Said  Ferry  and  Priviledge,  which  is  to  the 
Damage  of  Said  Richard  Carr  and  James  Carr,  as  they 
Say,  the  Sum  of  Six  hundred  pounds,  at  which  .Said  In- 
feriour  Court  holden  at  Salem  by  adjournment  as  afore- 
said Judgment  was  rendred  for  the  Defen'  for  Costs  of 
Suit,  from  which  Judgment  the  -Said  Richard  Carr  and 
James  Carr  appealed  to  the  Superiour  Court  of  Judica- 
ture appointed  by  law  to  have  been  holden  at  .Salem  for 
the  Said  County  of  Essex  on  the  .Second  Tuesday  of 
Noyeml)er,  1719.  but  held  by  adjournment  at  -Salem 
aforesaid  on  the  1  5"'  day  of  the  month  of  December  then 
next  following,  when  and  where  the  former  Judgment  was 
Confirmed  and  the  .Said  lOdward  Sergeant  recovered  Cost 
of  Courts;    whicii  Judgment  the  Said    Richard   Carr  and 


THE   FERRY  AT  CARR'S   ISLAXD  75 

James  Carr  Sav  is  wrong  and  Erroneous,  and  that  they 
are  thereby  damnifyed  the  Sum  of  Six  hundred  pounds  as 
Shall  then  and  there  be  made  to  appear,  wherefore  for  the 
Reversing  thereof  and  recovering  of  the  defen'  the  Said 
Sum  of  Six  hundred  pounds  damages  which  the  Plan'' 
have  Sustained  by  reason  of  the  Defen''  hindering  them 
of  the  Profits  of  the  Said  Ferry  and  Priviledge  from  Sep- 
tember. 1691,  to  March,  1703.  as  aforesaid,  and  also  the 
Costs  Granted  to  the  Said  Edward  Sergeant  by  the 
Judgment  aforesaid,  they  the  Said  Richard  Carr  and 
James  Carr  bring  this  Suit,  as  also  for  their  own  Cost  and 
Damages  occasioned  thereby.  The  Defen'  appeared  by 
Robert  Robinson,  Esq""  his  attorney,  and  Pleaded  the 
former  Judgment  was  Right  and  ought  to  be  Confirmed. 
Upon  which  Issue  being  Joyned,  the  Case  after  a  full 
hearing  was  Committed  to  the  Jury,  who  were  Sworne 
according  to  Law  to  try  the  Same  and  returned  their  ver- 
dict therein  upon  oath,  That  is  to  Say  they  find  for  the 
Defen*  Costs  of  Court.  Ifs  Therefore  Considered  by  the 
Execution  Court  that  the  Said  Edward  Sergeant  shall  recover 
Issued  against  the  Said  Richard  Carr  and  James  Carr  Costs  of 
May  29"'  1 72 1   Court  Taxed  at  Three  pounds  Six  Shillings. 

Sheriffs  Return  on  execution  dated  May  29.  1721. 
Edward   Sargent  v.  James   Carr  and   Richard   Carr. 

Essex,  ss  I  have  Recued  of  the  within  mentioned 
Richard  Carr  Three  pounds  Eight  shillings  in  Bills  of 
credit  of  this  province  in  full  satissfaction  of  this  Exe- 
cution on  the  other  side,  so  that  I  Return  this  Execution 
satisfyed  in  full  this  30''^  day  of  October,  i  721,  as  attest 

Bexja  Coker, 

under  s/ieriff 

It  is  probable  that  the  rapid  increase  of  population  along 
the  river  side  gradually  diverted  the  tide  of  travel  from  the 
old  ferry  at  Carr's  Island  ;  and,  previous  to  the  incorporation 
of  Newburyport,  it  became  unremunerative,  and  finally  was 
abandoned   altogether. 

A  large  part  of  the  island  remained  in  the  possession  of 
the  lineal  descendants  of  George  Carr  until  ten  or  twelve 
years  ago,  but  the  division  of  his  estate  and  the  subsequent 
.subdivisions    resulting   from    intermarriage    and    conveyances 


76  Oi'LD   XEWBURY 

largely  increased  the  number  of  owners,  and  interfered  with 
the  careful  and  prudent  management  of  the  property. 

The  following  abstract  from  genealogical  records  gix'cs  the 
direct  line  of  ownership  from  George  Carr  down  to  the  pres- 
ent time. 

In  Felt's  History  of  Ipswich,  George  Carr  is  described  as  a 
shipwright,  born  in  England,  and  one  of  the  settlers  of  the 
town  of  Ipswich  in  1633.  He  removed  with  Elizabeth,  his 
wife,  to  Salisbury,  Mass.,  in  1639.      ^i-''  children  were:  — 

Elizabeth'-,  born  April  21.  1642;   married  John  Woodniansey.  of  Boston, 

May  I,  1662. 
George-,  born  April   15,  1644:   married   Ann   Cotton,  daughter  of   Rev. 

Seaborn  Cotton,  of  Hampton,  N.H..  Nov.  8,  1677. 
Richard'-,  born  April  15.  1646:  died  April  25,  1649. 
William-,   born   April    15,    1648:   married    Elizabeth   Pike,   daugliter    of 

Robert  Pike,  Aug.  20,  1672. 
James'-,  born   April   28,  1650;   married   Mary   Sears,  of   Newbury.   Xov. 

14.  1677. 
Mary-,  born  Feb.  24,   1651  :   married   Rev.   James   Bailey,  of  Newbury. 

Sept.  I  7,  1672. 
Sarah'-',  born   Dec.    17,   1654:   married   William   Hinckley,  of   Hampton. 

N.H.,  Dec.  30,  I  700. 
John'-,  born  Nov.  14,  1656;  died  Sept.  23,  1689. 
Richard^,  born  April  2,  1659. 
Ann'-,  born  June  15,  1661  ;   married  Thomas  Putnam. 

George  Carr^  died  in  Salisbury  April  4,  1682.  In  the 
division  of  his  estate  Jame.s-  and  Richard  Carr-  were  granted 
"the  great  Ferry  on  both  sides  the  Island  &  Bridge  &  Pri\i- 
ledges  thereunto  belonging." 

Richard  Carr^  was  born  April  2,  1659,  and  b}'  his  hrst 
wife,  Elizabeth,  he  had  one  child,  Elizabeth'',  born  Jime  9, 
1691.  H)'  his  second  wife,  Doroth}',  he  had  one  son,  Kichard'\ 
born  Jan.  3,  1693-4.  l-'or  his  third  wife  he  married  Mrs. 
Sarah  Mealy,  by  whom  he  liad  two  children.  :  Janies'\  born 
Nov.  3,  1702;  and  Johir',  born  in  August,  1706.  Sarah 
Healy  Carr  died  Jan.  S,  1727;  ami  Richard  Carr-  married 
for  his  fourth  wife  Sarah  Greclc}'  -Aug.  10,  1727.  He  died 
in  Salisbury  .Sept.   11,  1727. 


THE   FERKY  AT   CARR'S   ISLAND 


77 


o 
man. 


Richard  Cai-r3,  ^ho  was  born  Jan.  3.  1693-4.  married, 
Nov  18  I  71  5,  Lydia  Coffin,  daughter  of  Stephen  and  harah 
Atkinson  Coffin,  by  whom  he  had  one  child,  Dorothy^  born 
Sept  18  I  7 1 6.  For  his  second  wife,  he  married  widow  Sarah 
Chase  Jmie  13,  1720,  by  whom  he  had  the  following-named 
children  :  — 

Sarahs  born  July  2.,  ^T-^  ;  married,  first,  Josiah  French  Dec.  20,  1739; 

second,  John  Ordway  Dec.  8,  1742. 
Judith^  born  July  21.  1721  ;    married  David  Hoyt  June  24.  1736. 
Elizabeth^  born  June  28,  1723;   married  Nathan  Rogers  Aug    18,  1744- 
Richard^  born  March  13,  1725  ••    married  Sarah  Cook  Apnl  16,  ,745- 
Rebeccas   born   Jan.   9.    ^727;    married    Benjamin    Ordway,   of    South 

Hampton,  N.H.,  Oct.  30,  1746. 
JamesS  born  Oct.  3,  U^S;    married  Mary  Greeley  Nov.  23,  xr.b. 
Mary^  born  July  13^  '  730- 

Richard    Can-    was    drowned    March    4.    1733-4,  at    nine 
'clock  in  the  evening,  while  attending  to  his  duties  as  ferry- 

ui.  ^  .    , 

James    CarrS    who   was   born    Oct.    3,    1728,   and   married 
Mary  Greeley  Nov.  23,  1756,  had  children  as  follows:  — 

Marv\  born  Sept.  21,  i757;    died  April  8.  1798- 
Judith-',  born  Aug.  13,  I759;   died  Jan.  3.,  1849^  unmarried. 
James-',  born  Sept.  10,  1761  ;    married   Mehitable   Dodge   Jan.   3,    1785. 
He  died  Dec.  20,  1851. 

Ehzabetln  born  Sept.  19.  '  763  ••    died  Sept.  16,  i779- 

Esther',  born  Dec.  9.  1765  ;    died  April  9.  1836. 

Levi\  born  Jan.  25,  .768;    married  Mary  Putnam  Nov.  29,  I797- 

Saraln  born  Aug.  17.  177°;  died  September,  1855,  unmarried. 

James  Carr^  died  June  9,  181 2. 

Levi  Carr5,  born  Jan.  25,  1768,  married  Mary  Putnam,  of 
Danvers,  Mass.,  Nov.  29.  1 797-     Their  children  were  :  - 

Levi'>  born  Nov.  5,  1798-.  married  Mary  Jane  Ireland  June  i,  1843. 
Mary«,  bom  Sept.  3,  1800;  married  Daniel  Norton  March  22,  1822. 
James'\  born  Feb.  6,  1803  ;    died  Sept.  26,  181  7. 

Clarissa^  born  June  6,  1805;    married  John  Currier,  Jr.,  Dec.  28,  1830. 
Estherc,  born  Nov.    i,   1807;   married   Augustus  Batchelder   Sept.    15, 
1836. 


THE    FERRY  AT  CARR'S  LSLAXD  79 

Levi  Carr''  died  April  14,  1820. 

Levi  Carr'\  who  was  born  Nov.  5,  1798,  married  IVLary  Jane 
Ireland  June  i,  1843,  and  had  children  as  follows  :  — 

Caroline  Alarcella'.  born   March  3.  1S44;   married  Henry  L.  Kingslxiry. 

of  Salisbury. 
Charles  Henry',  born  April  6,  184S;   died  March  24,  1886. 

The  writer  of  this  sketch,  a  son  of  Clarissa  Carr'^  (who  was 
born  on  the  island,  and  lived  there  during  her  childhood), 
has  often  listened  to  the  vague  and  contradictory  stories  that 
have  come  down  from  former  generations  concerning  this  old 
ferry.  In  the  preceding  pages  he  has  endeavored  to  give  the 
actual  facts,  without  exaggeration  or  embellishment,  gathered 
from  official  records,  and  documents  of  unquestioned  authority. 
Within  the  recollection  of  many  ])ersons  now  living  two 
houses  stood  near  each  other  on  the  island.  One  was  taken 
down  and  removed  about  the  )-ear  1845,  the  other  was  still 
standing  when  the  photographic  view  on  page  56  was  taken  ; 
but  during  the  summer  of   1883  it  was  destroyed  by  fire. 

Starting  from  the  Newbur}'  shore  at  the  foot  of  what  is 
now  known  as  Jefferson  Street,  the  ferry  landed  its  pas- 
sengers in  a  little  cove  directly  opposite  ;  and  by  a  narrow 
path  or  highway  running  in  an  easterly  direction  on  the  lower 
or  right-hand  side  of  the  house  seen  in  the  half-tone  print, 
they  crossed  the  island  to  the  floating  bridge,  connecting  with 
the  Salisbury  shore. 

The  view  presented  on  the  opposite  page  shows  the  island 
as  it  now  appears,  and  reveals  to  some  extent  the  alterations 
and  improvements  that  have  been  made  by  Hon.  Harvey  N. 
Shepard,  of  Boston,  who  bought  the  property  in  the  fall  of 
1882.  Two  new  houses,  with  barns  and  out-buildings,  have 
been  erected  ;  and  a  substantial  stone  pier  now  extends  across 
the  cove  on  the  river  side,  formerly  used  as  a  landing-place 
for  the  ferry.  The  house  in  the  immediate  foreground  on  the 
extreme  left  is  supposed  to  stand  on  land  once  owned  and  oc- 
cupied by  Tristram  Coffin,  Sr.  It  is  possible,  though  by  no 
means  certain,  that  his  ordinary  or  tavern  was  located  on  that 


8o  OULD   NEWBURY 

very  spot  two  luiiulrctl  and  fift)-  3-cars  a<j,-o.  Dionis,  his  wife, 
"having  made  her  beer  too  good  to  sell  at  the  legal  price 
of  two  pence  the  quart,  asked  three  pence,  tor  which  act  she 
was  complained  of  to  the  Court  ;  but,  as  the  law  required 
only  four  bushels  of  malt  to  one  hogshead  of  water  and  she 
put  in  six  bushels,  she  was  excused." 


JOHN   POORE,  OF  NEWBURY   NECK. 


John  Poore  came  from  Wiltshire,  England,  in  1635,  and 
settled  in  Newbury.  He  was  granted  land  on  "the  neck 
over  the  great  river,"  and  afterward  added  to  his  estate  by 
the  purchase  of  adjoining  lands.  He  built  the  house  in 
which  eight  generations  of  his  descendants  lived.  It  origi- 
nally consisted  of  one  square  room  on  the  ground  floor  with 
a  chamber  over  it,  unfinished  on  the  inside,  and  a  large 
chimney  on  the  eastern  end.  His  grandson,  Jonathan,  ex- 
tended the  main  house  beyond  the  chimney,  in  an  easterly 
direction,  and  subsequently  the  lean-to  was  added  in  the  rear. 
The  projection  at  the  south-western  corner,  shown  in  the 
picture  at  the  left  hand,  was  built  by  John  Poore,  of  the 
fourth  generation,  who  kept  the  ferry  over  Parker  River. 

Alfred  Poore,  in  his  genealogy  of  the  family,  gives  a  sketch 
of  this  old  house,  with  many  interesting  facts  relating  to  the 
early  life  and  occupation  of  its  first  owner,  John  Poore,  Sr. 
He  says  :  — 

By  an  inventory  of  his  personal  estate  we  find  the  date  of  his  de- 
cease to  be  "about"  November  21,  1684.  Tradition  says  he  was  out 
hunting,  and,  losing  his  way,  perished  by  cold  and  hunger  in  the  woods 
near  Andover.  On  file  in  the  olfice  of  Clerk  of  the  Courts  in  Essex 
County,  volume  xliii.,  page  73,  in  the  report  of  the  jury  of  inquest  sum- 
moned to  inquire  into  the  cause  of  his  death,  dated  Nov.  24th,  in  the 
year  of  our  Lord  1684,  we  find  the  following  verdict:  "We  judge  that, 
being  in  the  woods  and  following  his  game,  he  was  bewildered,  and  lost 
himself,  and  in  his  pursuit  plucked  off  his  clothes,  and  scattered  them 
some  good  distance,  one  part  from  another,  till  he  had  left  nothing  on 
save  his  wastcoat  and  drawers  and  breeches  and  hose  and  shoes." 

His  eldest  son,  John-,  born  June  21,  1642,  married  Mary 
Titcomb   Feb.  27,  1665,  and  lived  with  his  father  in  the  old 


JOHX    POO  RE,    OF   NEWBURY   NECK  83 

house.  In  his  will  dated  July  12,  1700,  and  proved  March  3, 
1 700-1,  he  gave  his  homestead  to  his  son,  Jonathan-'^. 

Jonathan-'^  was  born  Feb.  25,  1678.  His  intention  of  mar- 
riage to  Rebecca  Hale  w^as  recorded  Aug.  18,  1703.  He 
died  June  30,  1742,  leaving  six  children. 

John'*,  son  of  Jonathan-^,  born  June  20,  171 1,  in  the  old 
homestead,  married  Ann  Longfellow  Dec.  26,  1734.  He 
was  by  occupation  a  farmer.  He  also  kept  the  ferry  until 
1758,  when  the  bridge  over  Parker  River  w^as  built.  He 
lived  in  the  t)ld  house, 'and  died  there  Sept.  15,  1783. 

His  eldest  son,  Jonathan'^  born  Jan.  20,  1737,  married 
Sarah  Dole  Nov.  5,  1759.  He  was  active  in  securing  re- 
cruits for  the  French  and  Indian  wars,  and  collected  a  com- 
pany of  volunteers  for  the  Continental  Army  in  1775.  He 
occupied  the  old  homestead,  and  for  many  years  served  the 
public  in  the  capacity  of  innkeeper.  The  old  sign  that 
swung  in  front  of  the  tavern  has  been  preserved,  and  placed 
among  the  curiosities  and  memorials  of  the  past  in  the  rooms 
of  the  Newburyport  Marine  Society.  Jonathan  Foore^  died 
March  19,  1807. 

Samuel",  his  eldest  son  then  living,  born  Sept.  5,  1765, 
married,  for  his  first  wife,  Funice  Long  Oct.  10,  1791  ;  and 
after  her  decease  he  married.  May  11,  1834,  Abigail  Cur- 
rier. He  continued  to  reside  in  the  c^ld  house  until  his 
death,  July  17,  1849. 

His  son,  Samuel',  born  Nov.  6,  1796,  married  Hannah 
Greenough  Feb.  10,  1822.  He  settled  on  the  homestead 
with  his  father,  and  died  there  June  6,  1878. 

His  son,  Alfred'^  born  Aug.  11,  1830,  married  Mary  Pike 
Knight  June  26,  1857.  He  occupied  the  house  after  his 
father's  decease,  living  there  for  many  years.  He  still  owns 
and  cultivates  the  land  originally  granted  to  John  Poore,  Sr.  ; 
but  the  old  house  itself  has  disappeared.  It  was  taken  down 
early  in  the  spring  of  1890,  and  a  new  one  erected  on  the 
same  site. 


THOMAS  HALE,   OF  NEWBURY  NECK. 


Thomas  Hale,  with  his  wife  Thomasine  and  son  Thomas, 
probably  sailed  for  New  England  early  in  the  year  1637. 
He  evidently  brought  with  him  a  letter  from  Francis  Kirby 
to  Governor  John  Winthrop,  the  elder,  as  follows  :  — 

To    the    right    worshipfull    John    Winthrop.   Esquire,   at    his    house    at 
Boston  this  dd,  in  New  England. 

London,  this  10"^  of  May,  1637. 

Sir, —  I  wrote  you  lately  per  the  Hector,  wherein  I  sent  a  runlet 
marked  with  your  marke.  contayneinge  some  things  your  son  did  write 
me  to  send  him.  John  Wood,  master's  mate,  did  promise  mee  &  James 
Downeinge  that  he  would  be  carfull  of  it  &  deliver  to  you. 

These  are  now  to  intreat  you  that  you  would  be  assistante  to  the 
bearer  hereof  (Thomas  Hale,  my  neer  kinsman)  in  your  counsell  &  ad- 
uise  to  put  him  in  the  way  how  &  where  to  settle  himselfe  in  a  hopefull 
way  of  subsisteinge  with  his  family.  He  hath  brought  with  him  all  his 
Estate,  which  he  hath  heer  or  can  haue  duringe  the  life  of  his  mother, 
my  sister.  He  had  almost  200//.  when  he  began  to  make  his  provision 
for  this  voyage.  I  suppose  the  greatest  halfe  is  expended  in  his  trans- 
portation and  in  such  necessaries  as  will  be  spent  by  him  «S:  his  family 
in  the  first  vse  ;  the  lesser  halfe,  I  suppose,  he  hath  in  money,  and 
vendible  goods  to  provide  him  a  cottage  to  dwell  in.  and  a  Milshe  cow 
for  his  children's  sustenance.  I  suppose  his  way  will  be  to  hire  a  house 
or  part  of  a  house  for  the  first  year,  vntill  he  can  looke  out  &  buy  or 
build  him  a  dwellinge,  wherein  as  in  other  things  I  shall  intreat  you 
to  direct  him,  and  the  courtesy  that  you  shall  doe  him  therein  I  shall 
acknowledge,  as  done  to  myselfe,  &  I  shall  be  redy  (Deo  assistante)  to 
endeuour  to  requite  it  in  any  seruice  which  I  can  performe  for  you  heer. 
Thus  for  this  present  I  commit  you  all  to  the  protection  of  the  Al- 
mighty, &  shall  ever  rest  Your  loving  frend, 

Ffra  :   Kirby. 

I  desire  to  be  remembered  to  Mrs.  Winthrop,  to  your  son  Mr.  Jo  : 
&  his  wife,  &  the  rest  of  yours,  also  to  my  cosen  Mary  &  Su  :  Downe- 
inge.     My    brother    Downeinge    will    hasten    to    you,    the    next    spring 


86  OULD   XEWni'RY 

will  be  farthest,  Ciod  willinge :  for  he  seeth  that  euery  year  bringeth 
forth  new  difficulties  :  mv  nephew  can  tell  you  how  they  haue  met  with 
many  interruptions,  prohibitions  &:  such  like,  which  Mr.  I'eirce  &  others 
that  went  since  Mr.  I'eirce  were  not  troubled  withall. 

Indorsed  by  (iow  Winthrop.  ••  Mr.  Kirby." — Massachusetts  Histori- 
cal Society  Collections.  Fomlh  Series,  volume  7.  page  19. 

Thomas  Hale  came  to  Xewbur)-,  j^robal)!}'  by  the  achice 
of  Governor  Winthrop,  and  was  granted  a  house  lot  at  the 
Lower  (ireen.  His  name  appears  on  the  map  drawn  by  Dan- 
iel Dole  in  1828,  and  pid^lishv.:!  -m  ]xiL;e  14  of  this  book, 
giving;"  the  location  of  the  earl}-  settlers  at  the  old  town. 
Aul;-.  10,  1638,  he  was  appointed  one  of  the  haywards  of 
Newbiu-)-  ;  and  Sept.  7,  1638,  he  was  made  a  freeman  of  the 
colony  b\-  the  (leneral  Court.  At  a  general  town  meeting 
held  Oct.  6,  1638,  "the  town  at  the  acknowledgm'  of  Thomas 
Hale  did  confirme  the  sale  of  his  house  and  land  on  Merri- 
mack ridge  on  both  sides  to  Mr.  Dimimer  "  ;  and  the  27th 
day,  I  ith  month,  1640,  Joseph  Carter  bought  of  Thomas  Hale 
about  fifty-two  acres  of  land  on  "Merrimack  Rldg"  (see  Ips- 
wich Deeds,  book  i,  leaf  2). 

Feb.  23,  1642,  the  cjuestion  of  limiting,  according  to  a 
fixed  and  im\ar\ing  rule,  the  number  of  cattle  to  be  pastured 
by  each  freeholder  on  the  town's  common  was  referred  to 
a  committee,  of  which  Thomas  Hale  was  a  member.  His 
name  also  appears  in  the  list  of  perst)ns  entitled  to  a  propor- 
tionate part  of  the  common  and  undivided  lands  belonging  to 
the  town  of  Newbury  on  the  sexenth  day  of  December,  1642. 

He  removed  to  Haverhill  in  1645.  ]M-obably,  and  was  there 
one  of  the  earlv  selectmen  and  a  conuuissioner  for  the  trial 
of  small  causes.  He  e\-identl}-  returned  to  Xewbiu-y  five  or 
six  vears  later.  Nov.  12,  1650,  there  was  granted  or  laitl 
out  to  Thomas  llale  "ten  acres  of  Marsh  in  the  neck  o\-er 
the  great  ri\er  which  was  formerly  Stephen  Kents"  (^Ijiswich 
Deeds,  book  i,  leaf  227  (607). 

April  6,  1651,  there  was  "  laitl  out  to  Thomas  llale  one 
and  one-half  acres  adjoining  his  own  land  in  the  neck  oxer 
the  great  river,  and  bounded  by  the  land  of  the  said  Thomas 
Hale  on  the  west  and  north,"  etc.  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  i, 
leaf  227  (607). 


THOMAS    HALE.    OF    NEWBURY    NECK  87 

Jan.  15,  1652,  Stephen  Kent  and  wife  Anne  conveyed 
honse,  barn,  and  seventy  acres  of  marsh  and  upland  upon  the 
neck  on  the  south  side  of  Newbury  River  in  Newbury,  now 
in  the  possession  of  Thomas  Hale,  and  bounded  by  the  river 
on  the  north,  by  creeks  on  the  east  and  west,  and  the  high- 
way on  the  south,  to  the  said  Thomas  Hale,  of  Newbury,  late 
of  Haverhill,  in  exchange  for  a  farm  in  Haverhill  (Ipswich 
Deeds,  book  i,  leaf  236  (629). 

(3ct.  19,  1652,  "Thomas  Hale  yielded  to  the  town  one- 
half  acre  of  his  two  acres  over  against  his  house,  and  the 
town  granted  to  him  in  place  of  it  one-half  acre  on  the  south 
side  of  his  land  next  the  highway"  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  i, 
leaf  227  (607). 

May  14.  1655.  Thomas  Hale  acknowledged  to  have  sold  a  freehold 
to  Mr.  William  Thomas  unto  me,  &  desired  me  to  record  it  in  the 
Towne  book, 

AXTHOXV    SOMERBV. 

In  1656  or  1657,  Thomas  Hale  removed  to  Salem.  Jan. 
28,  1658,  he  bought  of  John  Smith  a  house  and  one  acre  of 
land  in  Salem  (Essex  Deeds,  book  i,  leaf  48).  His  name 
appears  in  the  list  of  "glovers"  in  that  town  for  the  year 
1659. 

Dec.  12,  1660,  Thomas  Hale,  Sr.,  of  Salem,  sold  to  his 
son  Thomas  Hale,  of  Newbury,  all  his  houses  and  lands 
bought  of  Stephen  Kent,  Jan.  15,  1652  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book 
2,  leaf  215  (396  ). 

In  166 1,  Thomas  Hale,  Sr.,  returned  to  Newbury,  and 
during  the  remainder  of  his  life  lived  in  the  old  homestead 
with  his  son.  In  the  ecclesiastical  difficulties  that  disturbed 
the  peace  and  quietness  of  the  town  from  1665  to  1670  his 
name  appears  as  an  acti\-e  supporter  of  the  Rev.  Thomas 
Parker.  He  died  Dec.  21,  1682.  His  widow,  Thomasine, 
died  Jan.  30,  1682-3.  No  will  appears  of  record,  nor  any 
administration  of  his  estate. 

Thomas  Hale^,  son  of  Thomas  Hale^,  was  probably  born  in 
England  in  1633.  He  came  with  his  parents  to  Newbury, 
and  probably  accompanied  them  to  Salem  in  1656.      He  mar- 


88  OULD   XEIVBURY 

ried  IVIay  26,  1657,  at  Salem,  Mary,  daughter  of  Richard  and 
AHce  (Bosworth)  Hutchinson. 

In  1660  he  received  from  his  father  a  deed  of  the  house 
and  land  on  Xcwbur)'  Neck.  At  a  meeting  (jf  the  town  of 
Newbury  held  March  3,  1660-61,  "there  was  granted  unto 
Thomas  Hale,  Junior,  twenty  Rod  of  Land  on  the  other  side 
of  the  way  by  the  Sirring  in  the  Neck,  over  the  Great  River, 
to  set  his  house  uppon,  and  for  a  Garden,  to  be  laid  out  by 
the  Lott  layers,"  etc. 

In  the  controversy  between  the  Rev.  Thomas  Parker  and 
Edward  Woodman  he  evidently  favored  the  Woodman  party, 
and  was  adjudged  by  the  General  Court,  May  29,  1671,  to 
have  been  guilty  of  scandalous  conduct,  and  was  sentenced, 
with  many  others,  to  pay  a  fine  of  one  noble,  a  sum  cqui\-alent 
to  6s.  S(/. 

May  16,  1682,  Thomas  Hale-,  of  Newbury  Neck,  "for  love 
and  affection  U)  my  son,  Thomas  Hale,  grandchild  of  my 
father,  Thomas  Hale,  senior,  of  Newbiuy,  in  consideration  of 
marriage  with  Sarah,  daughter  of  Ezekiel  Northen  of  Row- 
ley," conveyed  to  the  said  son  and  grandchild  one-half  his 
lands  and  housings  on  said  Newbury  Neck,  "  in  particular  the 
west  end  of  my  now  dwelling  house,  upon  condition  that  my 
said  son,  Thomas,  shall  take  care  of  my  business  and  affairs 
to  the  best  of   his  ability"  (Ipswich   Deeds,  bt)ok  5,  leaf  36). 

The  same  day  Thomas  Hale^  conveyed  to  his  son,  Thomas-\ 
the  other  half  of  the  house  and  land,  the  deed  to  take  effect 
at  the  decease  of  the  grantor.  He  died  Oct.  22,  16S8,  his 
widow  survi\-ing  him  for  several  )'ears. 

Thomas  Hale'^  was  a  man  of  immense  size,  and  is  said  to 
ha\e  weighed  over  five  hundred  j^jounds,  with  a  strong  and 
sonorous  voice  that  could  be  heard  at  a  great  distance.  He 
was  captain  of  the  militia  and  justice  of  the  peace.  Judge 
Sewall  opposed  his  appointment  as  ju.stice  in  1721,  "because 
there  are  five  in  Newbury  already,  and  he  hath  lately  kept  an 
i(i-(liuary  and  sold  rum."  Shorll)'  bctoic  his  death  he  re- 
moved to  Rowley,  and  died  there  April  12.  1730.  1 1  is  will, 
dated  April  6,  1730,  and  proved  Ma\  4,  1730.  mentions  son 
Thomas  as    having   receixed  a  (W-cd   of    the  land  in    Xewbury 


THOMAS    HALE,    OF    NEWBURY    NECK  89 

that  he  now  dwells  upon,  and  gives  to  his  two  sons,  Daniel* 
and  Joshua'*,  all  his  "housing",  lands,  and  meadows"  in  New- 
bury Neck,  on  condition  that  they  pay  to  their  mother  yearly 
a  certain  number  of  bushels  of  Indian  corn,  barley,  malt,  rye, 
wheat,  etc. 

May  8,  1731,  Daniel*  and  wife  Judith  and  Joshua*  and  wife 
Hannah  divided  the  lands  given  them  by  the  will  of  their 
father  in    Newbury    Neck  (Essex  Deeds,  book   117,  leaf  83). 

By  subsequent  conveyances,  by  will  and  by  deed,  the  prop- 
erty has  passed  into  the  possession  of  its  present  owners,  Mr. 
Samuel  K.  Dunning  and  Mrs.  Sarah  Jane  Churchill. 

A  portion  of  the  old  house  is  still  standing.  Recent  re- 
pairs and  alterations  have  materially  changed  its  outward 
appearance;  but  the  house,  as  it  was  twenty-five  or  thirty 
years  ago,  has  been  reproduced  by  the  half-tone  process  as  an 
illustration  of  this  sketch. 

Within  fifty  years  after  the  settlement  of  the  colony  of 
Massachusetts  Bay,  at  least  seven  emigrants  of  the  name  of 
Hale  settled  within  its  territorial  limits  ;  but  most  of  those 
who  bear  that  surname  in  this  vicinity  can  trace  their  an- 
cestry back  to  Thomas  Hale,  of  Newbury  Neck. 

John^,  the  son  of  Thomas  Hale*,  was  the  ancestor  of  Moses 
Emery  Hale,  Esq.,  of  Newburyport  ;  and  from  Thomas*,  the 
great-grandson  of  Thomas*,  descended  the  Rev.  Dr.  Benjamin 
Hale,  and  his  brothers,  Moses  L.,  Thomas,  Josiah  L.,  Ed- 
ward, Ebenezer,  and  Joshua,  and  his  sister,  Alice  Little,  wife 
of  the  Rev.  John  C.  March. 


bweH's     ^ 
MarcK's      V  Tavern 
Blue  Kr\ choi^      /^^_ 


S|.encer    Farm 


'TRAYNEING    GREEN"    AND    NEW    POND. 


"TRAYNEING   GREEN"   AND   NEW   POND. 


Six  or  seven  years  after  the  incorporation  of  the  town  of 
Newbury  and  the  landing  of  the  first  settlers  at  Parker 
River  the  scarcity  of  tillage  land  in  that  vicinity  and  the 
desire  to  engage  in  commercial  pursuits  led  a  majority  of 
the  inhabitants  to  favor  a  removal  to  the  banks  of  the  Merri- 
mack River,  two  or  three  miles  distant.  The  discussion  and 
development  of  this  plan,  however,  disclosed  many  serious 
difficulties.  The  removal  of  the  meeting-house  especially 
aroused  a  strong  opposition  ;  and  the  final  decision  was  not 
reached  until  January,  1646. 

The  following  brief  and  incomplete  statement,  giving  some 
of  the  details  of  the  proposed  plan,  is  taken  from  the  first 
volume  of  the  town  records  :  — 

Whereas  tlie  towne  of  Newbury,  well  weighing  the  streights  they 
were  in  for  want  of  plough  ground,  remoteness  of  the  common,  scarcity 
of  fencing  stuffe,  and  the  like,  did  in  the  year  1642  grant  a  commission 
to  -Mr.  Thomas  Parker,  M"'  James  Noyes.  M''  John  Woodbridge,  M'' 
Edward  Rawson.  Mr.  John  Cutting,  Mr.  John  Lowle,  Mr.  Edward 
Woodman,  and  Mr.  John  Clark,  for  removing,  settleing,  and  disposeing 
of  the  inhabitants  to  such  place  as  might  in  their  judgements  best  tend 
to  thevr  enlargements,  exchanging  theyr  lands,  and  making  such  orders 
as  might  bee  in  theyr  judgements  for  the  well  ordering  of  the  town's 
occasions  and,  as  in  their  commission  more  largely  appeareth.  the  said 
deputed  men  did  order  in  their  first  meeting  and  appoint  John  Merrill, 
Richard  Knight.  Anthony  Short,  and  John  Emery  to  go  to  all  the  in- 
habitants of  the  towne,  taking  a  true  list  of  all  the  stock  of  each  inhabi- 
tant, and  make  a  true  valuation  of  all  their  houses,  improved  land,  and 
fences,  that  theiTby  a  just  rule  might  be  made  to  proportion  each  inhabi- 
tant his  portion  of  land  about  the  new  towne,  and  removing  of  the 
inhabitants  there. 

It  was  ordered  at  a  meeting  of  the  eight  deputed  men  above  men- 
tioned that  each  freeholder  should  have  a  house  lott  of  foure  akers.     It 


92  OULD    NEWBURY 

was  further  ordered,  in  respect  of  tlie  time  for  tlie  inliabitants  removeing 
from  the  place  they  now  inhal)it  to  that  which  is  layd  out  and  appointed 
for  their  new  hal)itations.  each  inhabitant  shall  enjoy  their  house  lotts 
foure  vears  from  the  day  of  the  date  of  this  commission. 

The  New  I'oncl,  frcqueiitl}"  mcntiniicd  in  the  g'rants  made 
by  the  town  at  this  time,  was  no  cl(uil)t  artificially  formed 
for  the  piu'i^ose  of  providin<;'  a  convenient  supply  of  water 
for  horses  and  cattle,  and  was  probabl)'  designated  "  New 
Pond"  in  the  records  to  distinguish  it  from  the  older  one 
called  "  h'rog  Pond." 

The  first  volume  of  the  town  records  was  for  many  years 
in  a  \'ery  dilai:)idated  condition,  and  during  that  time  was 
despoiled  of  many  of  its  interesting  historical  facts.  Prob- 
ably two  hundred  pages  have  been  lost  or  destroyed  through 
carelessness  and  neglect.  Within  two  )'ears.  howe\'er,  the 
scattered  leaves  of  this  torn  and  mutilated  \-olume  have  been 
carefully  repaired,  rearranged,  and  rebound. 

It  is  impossible  to  follow  the  details  of  the  plan  adopted 
in  1642,  or  determine  the  bounds  and  limits  of  the  new 
settlement.  Many  of  the  grants  made  at  that  time  were 
not  recorded,  or,  if  recorded,  cannot  now  be  identified  ;  but 
a  map  showing  the  four-acre  lots  between  Chandler's  Lane 
(now  P'ederal  Street)  and  ( )rdway's  Lane  (now  ALirket 
Street),  with  subsequent  transfers  down  to  the  year  1700, 
verified  and  confirmed  by  the  records  at  the  Registry  of 
Deeds  at  Salem,  has  been  prepared  expressly  for  publication 
in  this  book,  and  will  be  found  a  few  pages  farthei"  on. 

The  new  town  probabl}'  extended  from  "  tra\'neing  green" 
to  the  mouth  of  Artichoke  Ri\-er,  and  included  all  the  ter- 
ritor)'  between  South  Street  (now  I'arkei' Street),  Low  Sti-eet, 
and  Merrimack  Ri\er. 

April  10,  1644,  there  were  laid  out  to  John  hjuer}',  ]\\, 
fourscore  acres  of  u])kuul  near  Artichoke  Rixer ;  antl  as 
earl)'  as  1652  Richard  Hartlett  and  Christopher  Ixullett 
were  settled  at  Hai'tlett's  C'o\e.  h'.dwaiil  Rawson's,  after- 
ward William  l'illsbur)'s,  house  and  farm  were  on  tlie 
\vi.'steil\'  side  of  the  high  I'oad,  neai"  the  head  of  Mooch's 
Lane,  now  known    as   Woodland    .Street.       It    is   probable  that 


''  TRAVXE/XG     GA'EEX"    A. YD    XEiV    POXD  93 

all  the  desirable  land  between  this  farm  and  Daniel  Pierce's 
farm,  at  the  eastern  end  of  training  green,  was  laid  out  and 
apportioned  among  the  freeholders  of  the  town  previous  to 
Oct.  20,  1646. 

In  1642,  "the  hill  by  the  little  pine  swamp,"  between  what 
is  now  Parker  Street  and  Oak  Hill  Cemetery,  was  selected 
as  the  most  convenient  place  for  the  new  meeting-house  ;  but 
after  a  long  controversy  the  location  was  changed  to  "a 
knowle  of  upland  by  Abraham  Toppan's  barne,"  as  appears 
by  the  following  record  :  — 

At  a  towne  meeting  of  the  eight  men.  January  second,  1646. 

Wee.  whose  names  are  in  the  margent  expressed  (James  Noyes. 
Edward  Woodman.  John  Cutting.  John  Lowle.  Richard  Knight,  and 
Henrv  Short),  for  the  settleing  the  disturbances  that  yett  remayne  about 
tlie  planting  and  setling  the  meeting  house,  that  all  men  may  cheerfully 
goe  on  to  improve  their  lands  at  the  new  towne,  doe  determine  that  the 
meeting  house  shall  be  placed  and  sett  up  at  or  before,  the  twentieth  of 
October  next  in,  or  upon,  a  knowle  of  upland  by  Abraham  Toppan's 
barne  within  a  six  or  sixteen  rodd  of  this  side  of  the  gate  posts  that  are 
sett  up  in  the  high  way  by  the  said  Abraham  Toppan's  barne. 

Edward  Rawson  contradicente  this  order. 

A  remonstrance,  signed  by  Edmund  Greenleaf,  Daniel 
Thurston,  Stephen  Kent,  and  John  Poore,  was  presented  to 
the  General  Court,  protesting  against  the  removal  of  the 
meeting-house  from  the  Lower  Green,  and  is  published  in  full 
in  Coffin's  History  of  Newbury,  pages  44  to  46  inclusive. 
The  decision  of  the  commissioners,  however,  was  allowed  to 
stand  as  recorded  ;  and  the  meeting-house  was  soon  after 
erected  on  land  that  is  now  used  as  a  bur3-ing-ground  near 
"the  trayneing  green." 

During  the  next  two  or  three  months  the  settlement  of 
the  new  town  progressed  with  great  rapidity.  At  a  meeting 
of  the  eight  commissioners,  held  in  April,  1646,  it  was 
ordered  :  — 

The  time  being  too  short  to  finish  and  perfectly  record  all  the  grants 
which  ha\e  bin  made  bv  the  eight  men,  that  whatever  Mr.  Rawson  shall 
record  that  himself  or  Richard  Knight  doth  perfectly  remember  was 
granted  to  any  inhabitant  shall  be  by  all.  and  is  by  all.  hereby  acknowl- 


94  OL'LD    XEW'BCRY 

edijed   to  be  authentick   and  legall  as  any  other  grant  already  recorded, 
so  it  he  done  within  tliese  six  months. 

P\)iir  )'ears  later  an  attempt  was  made  to  com}:)el  the  in- 
habitants of  the  town  to  record  all  sales  or  exchanges  of  land 
with  the  town  clerk,  as  will  appear  b)'  the  following  order:  — 

Whereas,  by  multitude  of  grants,  sales,  and  exchanges  by  occasion 
of  the  townes  remouall  haue  been  Exchanged  by  the  towne.  and  sold  and 
exchanged  one  with  another,  and  by  the  neglect  of  some  severall  grants 
that  haue  not  l)een  recorded,  for  the  prevention  of  all  such  abuses  and 
unnecessary  trubles,  which  are  apt  to  arise  therefrom.  It  is  ordered 
that  all  and  every  inhabitant  of  this  towne.  that  either  looke  at  their 
owne  protit  or  peace  of  the  towne,  shall  at  their  owne  perill  repaire  to 
Richard  Knight  and  procure  him.  with  some  one  of  the  eight  commis- 
sioners, in  case  their  evidence  be  not  cleare  otherwise,  to  testify  to  the 
towne  clarke  each  grant  made  to  any  of  them,  who  shall  be  and  hereby 
is  impowered  to  record  the  same,  and  the  party  for  whom  such  grant  is 
to  bee  recorded  shall  pay  to  the  towne  clarke  foure  pence  for  each  grant 
recording,  and  satisfy  Richard  Knight  for  his  paines  sixe  pence :  and 
the  like  course  is  to  be  taken  with  sales  and  exchanges  that  haue  been 
made  with  the  towne  and  now  lyeth  in  coiiion,  and  that  Richard  Knight 
is  chosen  to  bring  in  all  such  exchanges  to  the  towne  clarke  to  be  re- 
corded, and,  if  he  refuse  to  do  it,  the  towne  clarke  shall  make  it  Knowne 
to  the  orderers  of  the  towne  affaires. 

Signed  liy       Mr.  Eo.  Rawsox,  Mk.  William   CiKKKIsh. 

Hen:  Short,  Rich   K.\i(;ht. 

Nich:  Noves,  John    I^ikk,  Jcn"^ 

Novemb  12"'  1650. 

The  high  road,  along  Meirimack  Ridge,  from  Parker 
l\.i\'er,  was  jM'obably  in  existence  before  the  settlement  of  the 
new  town,  and  imdoiibtedl)'  extended  in  nearh'  a  direct  line 
to  the  road  leading  to  Carr's  ferr}-  (now  Jefferson  Street), 
with  an  occasional  turn  to  the  right  or  to  tlu'  left,  in  order  to 
a\'oid  impassal)le  hills  or  steep  ra\ines  tormed  1)\-  the  water- 
courses. The  continuation  of  this  wa\'  to  AmcsbuiA'  fi.'i-r\' 
landing  was  made  b\'  order  of  the  town  in  1668,  as  will  more 
full)'  appear  in  the  descripti\e  sketch  of  the  map  of  tlu'  West 
I'arish. 

Dec.  13,  1686,  the  town   a])pointed  a  committee  to  la\'  out 


''TRAYNEIXG    GKEKy"   AND    NEW    POND  95 

a  way  through  "  the  plaines  to  Sergeant  Emery's  Mill,"  and 
also  "  a  road  four  rods  wide  and  no  more  from  Artichoke 
river  to  Lowell's  brook  (now  Brown's  Spring),  and  thence  to 
the  Bradford  line." 

At  first  all  the  streets  or  ways  leading  from  the  high  road 
to  the  Merrimack  River  were  called  lanes,  and  some  of  the 
earliest  grants  of  land  in  the  new  town  were  bounded  on  the 
lane  leading  to  Watts's  cellar  (now  State  Street).  The  ways 
or  lanes  in  the  vicinity  of  "  trayneing  green  "  and  "  new  pond  " 
were  probably  laid  out  at  a  very  early  date.  Noyes'  lane 
(now  Parker  Street)  was  in  existence  as  early  as  1646;  and 
a  kiln  for  burning  lime  was  erected  in  1697,  by  order  of  the 
town,  at  the  lower  end  of  Muzzey's  Lane  (now  Marlborough 
Street).  Rolfe's  Lane,  indicated  on  the  map  by  dotted  lines, 
was  not  laid  out  and  accepted  by  the  town  until  1735, 
although  it  was  evidently  in  use,  as  a  private  way,  at  a  much 
earlier  date.  \\\  1710  the  town  chose  a  committee  "to  dis- 
course with  Benjamin  Rolfe  about  purchasing  it,  in  order  to 
make  it  a  highway  for  the  town's  use."  No  further  action 
appears  to  have  been  taken  until  March  11,  1734-5,  when 
the  following  order  was  entered  upon  the  town  records  :  — 

Upon  sending  a  petition  signed  by  Col.  Joseph  Gerrish  &  others  de- 
siring that  y''  lane  which  is  on  y*^  East  side  of  y«  traning  green  &  running 
down  by  Henry  Rolf,  Esq.  to  Merrimack  riuer  may  be  made  a  town  way 
for  y*"  use  of  y''  Town  of  Newbury,  etc.,  The  selectmen  are  desired  to 
lay  out  the  abovesaid  lane  for  a  town  way  &  to  measure  y«  length  of 
said  lane  &  y*^  bradth  of  it  in  several  places  &  enter  y'^  bradth  of  it  in 
this  return  that  it  may  be  kept  at  its  full  bradth,  &  strictly  inquire  who 
are  v'=  owners  of  s'^  land.  &  if  y''  owners  of  said  land  will  accept  of  thirty 
pounds  this  day  granted  for  said  way  in  full  satisfaction  for  said  way. 
Then  y<=  selectm  are  desired  to  se  said  way  put  on  y*^  town  records. 

In  the  month  of  December  following  the  selectmen  re- 
ported as  follows  :  — 

We,  the  subscribers,  being  desired  by  the  town  of  Newbury  at  their 
meeting  March  the  11"^  1734-5  to  lay  out  a  lane  called  by  the  name  of 
Rolfe's  Lane  for  a  town  way  according  to  the  vote  of  said  town  as  by 
record  may  appear,  we   have  this   24*  day  of  December,  1735,  viewed 


"  TKAVXE/AG    GA'EEX"   A. YD    iVEJF   POXD  97 

said  lane  t.\;  laid  it  out  for  a  town  way.  &  measured  said  wav  or  lane  in 
several  places,  viz  :  we  began  at  the  easterly  end  of  said  lane  ne.xt  to 
Merrimack  river  and  it  measured  one  rod  &  eleven  feet  in  breadth,  & 
at  the  upper  end  of  Samuel  Rolfe's  land  two  rods  in  breadth.  &  against 
Hemy  Rolfe,  Escj.'s  house,  thirty  feet  in  breadth,  and  against  the  land 
of  said  Rolfe, —  bought  of  ,Samuel  Rolfe. —  it  is  about  twentv  two  feet 
in  breadth,  and  the  rest  of  said  way  or  lane  is  two  rods  in  breadth  until 
it  comes  within  about  four  rods  of  the  upper  end  of  said  way  ne.xt  to 
the  green.  &  then  it  is  about  tw^enty  seven  feet  in  breadth,  as  said  wav  is 
now  fenced,  &  said  Henry  Rolfe,  Escj.,  ]\Ir.  John  Brown.  William 
Brown.  Richard  Hale  &  Benjamin  Pettingell  have  agreed  to  take  the 
said  thirty  pounds  which  was  granted  by  the  inhabitants  of  said  town 
at  their  meeting  aforesaid  in  full  satisfaction  for  said  lane  or  way  as 
by  a  deed  or  conveyance,  under  their  hands  &  seals  bearing  even  date 
herewith,  may  more  fully  appear. 

Dated  at  Newbury.  December  the  24,  1735,  as  above  said. 

Charles  Ppzircp:, 
JoHX  Emery.  Jl'xior, 
Samuel  March, 

SeleciJiien,  or  Coin iniitec  for  said  toivn  of  A'cwburj. 

When  the  expedition  for  the  capture  of  Quebec  was  deter- 
mined upon,  in  1775,  a  detachment  of  troops  under  command 
of  Colonel  Benedict  Arnold,  numbering  about  one  thousand 
men,  marched  from  Boston,  and  arrived  at  Newbury  on  the 
afternoon  of  the  15th  and  the  morning"  of  the  i6th  of 
September. 

A  stone  bowlder,  suitably  inscribed,  has  recently  been 
placed  opposite  the  spot  where  three  comimnies  of  riflemen, 
under  Captain  Morgan,  encamped  at  the  corner  of  Rolfe's 
Lane  on  the  easterly  side  of  "  Trayneing  Green."  The  rest 
of  the  troops  were  lodged  in  the  town  house  and  in  two  un- 
occupied rope-walks  in  Newburvport.  On  the  19th  of  Sep- 
tember the  whole  force  embarked  on  board  ten  transports, 
and  set  sail  for  the  mouth  of  the  Kennebec  Ri\'er. 

The  first  meeting-house  erected  in  the  new  town  "upon 
a  knowle  of  upland  by  Abraham  Toppan's  barne "  was  a 
small  square  building,  roughly  finished,  with  a  gallery  on  the 
westerly  side.  In  consequence  of  "  divers  complaints  having 
been    made    from    time  to  time  of  disorder  in  the  meeting;- 


98  OL'LD   XEWBURY 

house"  the  selectmen  ordered  Jan.  24.  1651,  "that  every 
householder,  both  men  and  women,  shall  sit  in  those  seats 
that  are  appointed  for  them  durint;  their  lives." 

In  1654,  an  effort  was  made  to  procure  a  bell  to  announce 
the  Sunday  services,  but  final  action  was  a]i]iarently  delayed 
or  postponed  until  the  second  meeting-house  was  built. 
Sept.  21,  1654,  "it  was  ordered  that  the  Town es  men  select 
shall  loi"thwith  l-]\amine  &;  ret|uiix'  an  account  of  the  money 
or  j;"oods  that  hath  bin  g'athered  to  purchas  a  bell  in  whose 
hands  it-  is,  &  to  make  report  to  the  towne." 

In  1 66 1,  a  new  meeting-house  was  erected  a  few  rods  south 
of  the  old  one,  which  was  allowed  to  stand  until  the  new 
edifice  was  ready  for  use.  In  June  "the  meeting-house  was 
seated,"  the  men  and  women  being  assigned  seats  in  accord- 
ance with  their  social  rank  and  condition.  Into  this  new 
meeting-house  Lydia  Perkins,  wife  of  Eliakim  W'ardwell,  of 
Hampton,  N.H.,  came  naked  in  answer  to  repeated  demands 
that  she  should  appear  and  give  reasons  for  her  withdrawal 
and  separation  from  the  church.  On  the  records  of  the 
court  held  at   Salem  is  the  following  decree:  — 

May  5,  1663.  Lydia  Wardwell  on  her  presentment  for  coming  naked 
into  Newbury  Meeting  house.  The  .sentence  of  the  court  is  that  she 
shall  be  severely  whipt  and  pay  the  costs  and  fees  to  the  marshall  of 
Hampton  for  bringing  her.  Costs,  ten  shillings:  fees,  two  shillings  and 
six  pence. 

This  meeting-house  was  undoubtedly  proxided  with  a  bell  ; 
for  Elizabeth  Webster  was  sentenced  b}'  the  court,  in  1663, 
for  taking  a  false  oath,  "to  stand  at  the  meeting  house  dore 
at  Newbury  the  next  lecture  da\'  from  the  ringing  the  first 
bell  until  the  minister  be  read}'  to  begin  |)ra)'er,  with  a  })ai)er 
on  her  head,  written  in  capitall  letters, —  i-'or  takixc  .\ 
F.\i.si-:  oAi'ii  IN  cdi  KT."  And  in  1  )ecend-)er,  1663,  .\nthon\' 
Morse,  Si".,  was  a])pointed  to  keep  the  meeting-hnuse  in 
order    and    to    ring    the    bell. 

.\t  a  general  meeting  of  the  town  held  .March  S,  1665, 
"  It  was  ordered  that  such  as  would  build  a  shelter  for  their 
horses    by    the   meeting-house   all    along    goodman     Topjians 


''TRAYNEING    GREEN"   AND    NEW   POND  99 

fence  they  shall  have  liberty,  provided  they  do  not  make  it 
above  twelve  foot  wide." 

Tradition  asserts  that  this  meeting-house  was  enclosed 
with  a  picket  fence,  with  gates  for  the  entrance  of  worship- 
pers. Horses  tied  near  these  gates  would  freciuently  ob- 
struct the  way,  to  the  great  inconvenience  of  the  congrega- 
tion accustomed  to  assemble  there.  In  order  to  remove  this 
cause  of  complaint,  the  selectmen  prohibited  the  tying  of 
horses  outside  the  fence,  whereupon,  to  the  surprise  of  these 
worthy  officials,  they  found  the  horses  on  the  following  Sun- 
day securely  fastened  inside  the  fence.  Accordingly,  the 
town  ordered  March,  1667-8,  "that  no  horses  shall  be  tyed 
zvithin  side  or  zvithont  side  the  fence,"  by  the  meeting-house, 
"under  penalty  of  .  .  .  for  each  offence." 

July  5,  1698,  a  committee  was  chosen  to  make  arrange- 
ments for  the  building  of  a  new  meeting-house.  A  contract 
was  made  with  "  Serjeant  Stephen  Jaques,"  and  the  new  edi- 
fice was  completed  in  1700.  It  was  sixty  feet  in  length, 
fifty  feet  in  breadth,  and  twenty-four  feet  stud.  "  Long 
seats  "  were  provided  for  the  congregation  generally,  but  a 
pew  was  built  for  the  minister's  wife  by  the  pulpit  stairs  ; 
and  permission  was  granted  Colonel  Uaniel  Pierce,  Major 
Thomas  Noyes,  and  other  prominent  members  of  the  parish 
"  to  build  pews  on  the  lower  floor  for  themselves  and  their 
families."  In  the  roof  above  the  timbers  and  rafters  were 
plainly  visible,  while  the  gable  windows  projecting  from 
either  side  gave  light  to  the  upper  gallery  where  the  young 
people  were  seated.  Three  hundred  and  thirteen  persons 
were  assigned  seats  in  this  new  meeting-house. 

Oct.  18,  1700,  Colonel  Daniel  Pierce  and  Tristram  Coffin, 
P2sq.,  were  authorized  to  procure  a  new  bell  "  of  about  four 
hundred  pounds  weight  "  ;  and  Jan.  4,  1706,  the  town  "voted 
that  the  new  bell  be  hanged  in  the  turret  of  the  meeting- 
house with  all  convenient  speede.  Also  to  take  care  that  the 
bell  be  rung  at  nine  of  the  clock  every  night,  and  that  the 
day  of  the  month  be  every  night  tolled." 

In  1766,  while  the  Rev.  John  Tucker  was  minister  of 
the  church  and  parish,  a  portion  of  the  congregation  became 


lOO  OULD   XK]VBURY 

dissatisfied  with  his  pi'cachiny;,  and  finall}'  ori^anized  a  new 
society,  and  commenced  the  erection  of  a  ht)use  of  worship 
nearly  opposite  the  one  then  standing.  A  committee  of 
three  was  chosen  to  appear  at  the  General  Court  and  remon- 
strate ai;ainst  these  i)roceedinij;s.  The  house  was  raised  and 
boarded,  but  never  finished.  On  the  ninth  day  of  Februar)', 
1 77 1,  "in  a  \iolent  storm  of  thunder,  lig'htnin*;',  wind,  and 
rain,"  it  was  blown  from  its  ft»undations  and  le\'elled  to  the 
ground. 

May  4,  I S06,  the  Re\".  John  S.  I'opkin  iireached  for  the 
last  time  in  the  meeting-house,  then  more  than  a  century 
old.  It  was  taken  down  during  the  summer,  and  a  new  one 
built  on  nearly  the  same  site,  which  was  destrt)yed  by  fire 
on  the  night  of  Jan.  25,  1868. 

The  present  edifice  was  erected  during  the  summer  of 
1868  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  street,  and  the  space  occu- 
pied by  the  four  preceding  houses  now  forms  a  part  of  the 
old  burying-ground  in  the  First  Parish  of  Newbury. 

From  the  year  1665  to  1670  inclusi\e  the  town  was 
greatly  disturbed  and  agitated  by  the  controversy  in  regard 
to  church  government  and  discipline  between  the  Rev. 
Thomas  Parker  and  some  of  his  parishioners,  under  the  lead 
of  Mr.  Fdward  Woodman.  The  details  of  this  fierce  eccle- 
siastical struggle  are  given  in  Coffin's  History  of  Newbury, 
pages  72-1 12. 

While  this  contest  was  raging  in  Newbur^',  members  of 
the  Church  of  l-jigland,  Quakers,  and  Anabaptists,  residing 
elsewhere  in  the  colon}',  were  denied  their  rights  and  privi- 
leges, and  })rohibited  from  worshipjMng  God  according  to  the 
dictates  of  conscience. 

In  1665,  Charles  II.,  King  of  PLngland,  apjiointed  a  board 
of  commissioners,  consisting  of  Colonel  Richard  Nichols, 
Sir  Robert  Carr,  Knt.,  George  Cartwright,  l^sej..  ami  .Samuel 
Mavericke,  Fsq.,  to  confei'  and  consult  with  the  inhp.bitants 
of  the  colon)-  with  reference  to  tliese  proceedings.  These 
commissioners  were  instructed  to  demand  in  the  name  of  the 
king  the  correction  of  many  abuses  of  which  coiuplaint  had 
been  made,  and  especialh"  to  insist 


^'TRAYXEIA'G     GREEN''    AXD    XEW    POXD  lOl 

That  such  who  desire  to  vse  the  Booke  of  Comon  Prayer  may  be  per- 
mitted to  doe  so  wf'out  incurring  any  penalty,  reproach,  or  disadvantage 
in  liis  interest,  it  being  very  scandalous  that  any  persons  should  be  de- 
barred the  exercise  of  his  religion  according  to  the  lawes  iS:  custome  of 
England,  bv  those  who,  by  the  indulgence  granted,  haue  lilaerty  left  to 
be  what  profession  in  religion  they  please. 

In  a  word,  that  persons  of  good  &  honest  conversations,  who  haue 
lined  long  there,  may  enjoy  all  the  priuledges,  ecclesiastical  &  civil, 
which  are  due  to  them,  and  which  are  enjoyed  by  others,  as  to  choose 
&  be  chosen  into  places  of  government  &  the  like,  &  that  differences  in 
opinion  doe  not  lessen  their  charity  to  each  other,  since  charity  is  a 
fundamentall  in  religion. 

The  commissioner.s  presented  their  in.structions  to  the 
governor  and  the  deputies  as.sembled  in  Boston  in  the  month 
of  May,  1665  ;  and  Edward  Rawson,  formerly  town  clo'rkjOi 
Newbury,  but  now  secretary  of  the  colony  of  Massachusetts 
Bay,  was  ordered  to  prepare  a  reply  in  defence  'of  thei  la-\\\s 
established  by  the  Great  and  General  Court. 

The  commissioners  were  ultimately  defeated  in  their  efforts 
to  regulate  and  control  the  policy  of  the  colonial  govern- 
ment, and  after  a  long  and  weary  contest  returned  to  Eng- 
land, disappointed  and  discouraged  ;  but  the  discussion  of  the 
ciuestion  undoubtedly  strengthened  the  convictions  and  en- 
couraged the  inhabitants  of  the  West  Parish  of  Newbury  to 
take  a  decisive  step,  and  assert,  some  years  later,  their  right 
to  establish  and  maintain  public  worship  according  to  the 
ritual  of  the  Church  of  England. 

Hugh  March's  tavern,  the  Ilsley  house,  John  Spencer's 
estate,  and  the  residences  of  Abraham  Toppan,  Tristram 
Coffin,  and  the  Rev.  James  Noyes,  are  described  elsewhere  in 
this  book,  and  therefore  do  not  require  further  notice  here. 
On  the  north-easterly  side  of  Noyes'  Lane,  or  South  Street, 
formerly  stood  the  house  where  Henry  Sewall  lived  and  died. 
There  Samuel  Sewall,  during  his  boyhood,  pursued  his  studies 
under  the  direction  of  the  Rev.  Thomas  Parker,  who  resided 
in  the  Noyes  house  across  the  way.  The  land  connected 
with  this  estate  extended  to  the  high  road,  as  indicated  by  the 
dotted  lines  on  the  map. 

The  original  grant  to  Henry  Travers,  in  1645,  copied  from 
the  Proprietors'  Records,  reads  as  follows  :  — 


102  OULD    iVEWBCRY 

In  consideration  of  Henry  Travers  receiving  a  house  lot  at  the  new 
town  fin  Soutli  Street  and  Merrimack,  he  resigned  up  into  tlie  Town's 
liand  liis  liouse  h)t  at  tlie  old  town  ujxin  the  little  hill. 

In  hi.s  will,  (kited  Jul}'  26,  164CS,  Menry  Travers  says:  — 

Having  occasion  to  go  to  sea  and  know  not  whether  1  shall  live  to 
come  again.  I  do  by  this  present  declare  mv  last  will  and  testament  as 
followeth :  to  ww  Son  James  mv  house  and  half  aci'e  lot  and  m\-  four 
acre  lot  at  Xew  town  and  mv  division  land  and  mv  eight  acres  of  salt 
marsh,  etc. 

J^xiclentl)',  I  lenry  Tra\'ers  did  not  return  to  Ne\vl)iu'}'.  His 
will  was  probated,  and  an  inventory  of  his  estate  taken  July 
15,  1659,  "A  house  and  four  acres  of  land  with  the  orchard 
Arid, light  acres  of  marsh  land  and  eig'ht  acres  of  divident  land 
with  .privefege  of  commonage"  are  mentioned  in  the  a])praisal. 
t  ;0'dt'.''i«, '"?^59,  Richard  Window,  of  Gloucester,  and  his  wife 
Bridget,  widow  and  executrix  of  Henry  Travers,  deceased, 
con\-eyed  to  Nicholas  Wallington,  of  Newbury,  "four  acres, 
formerl}'  land  of  said  Tra\'ers,  bounded  with  the  street  going 
to  Merrimack  on  the  east,  and  the  South  Street  on  the  South, 
and  Richard  Brown's  land  on  the  west,  and  Tristram  Coffin's 
on  the  north,  with  the  house  thereon  "  (Ipswich  Deeds, 
book   2,   leaf    12  (21 ). 

Oct.  26,  1659,  Nicholas  Wallington,  of  Newbury,  conveyed 
to  John  Browne,  of  Newbury,  house  and  four  acres  of  land, 
lately  pinxhased  of  the  executrix  of  Henry  Tra\ers,  described 
as  above  (Ipswich   Deeds,  book  2,  leaf  13  (24). 

Nov.  7,  1660,  John  Browne,  of  Newbur}',  glazier,  sold  to 
Henry  Sewall,  of  Newbury,  gentleman,  house  and  foiu"  acres 
of  land  in  Newbury,  formerl)'  owned  b}'  Henry  Traxers, 
"bounded  with  the  streets  on  the  south  and  east,  the  land  of 
Richard  Browne  on  the  west,  and  Tristram  Coffin's  kmd  on 
y''  north,"  also  sliop  and  new  shop  lateh'  built  and  floored, 
etc.  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  2,  page  16  (28). 

Henry  Sewall,  in  his  will  dated  Aug.  17,  1678,  ga\e  to  his 
wife,  during  lier  lite,  "the  house  new  built  which  now  1  dwell 
in  witli  I  A  aci'cs  h'ing  below  the  hill,"  and  to  his  son  Steplien 
dui-iug   his  natural  life  "two  acres  and  an    halfe  of  laml  (after 


'^  TKAYXEIXG     GREEN''    AXD    NEW    POND  103 

the  acre  &  halfe  lying  to  1113-  now  dwelling  house  &  abo\'e  dis- 
posed of  is  measured  out),  be  it  more  or  less,"  etc.,  and  to 
his  son  Samuel  Sewall  various  estates  in  Coventry  and 
Warwickshire  counties,  luigland,  "and  the  house,  barn,  and 
land  given  to  my  wife,  after  her  decease." 

The  Rew  John  W'oodbridge,  whose  house  and  farm  were  on 
the  easterly  side  of  the  New^  I'ond,  came  to  New  England  in 
the  ship  "Mary  and  John"  in  1634,  in  company  with  his 
uncle,  the  Rew  Thomas  Parker.  He  was  clerk  of  the  town 
of  Newbury  from  1635  to  1638.  In  1639  he  married 
Mere)',  daughter  of  Thomas  Dudley,  governor  of  the  colony 
of  Massachusetts  Bay.  In  1643  he  was  a  schoolmaster  in 
Boston,  and  afterward  studied  for  the  ministr)-,  being  or- 
dained at  Andover  Oct.  24,  1645.  He  returned  to  Eng- 
land with  his  wife  and  family  in  1647,  and  remained  there  for 
si.xteen  years.  In  1663  he  came  again  to  Newbury,  and  was 
made  an  assistant  minister  of  the  parish  where  his  uncle,  the 
Rev.  Thomas  Parker,  officiated.  On  account  of  the  troubles 
and  dissensions  in  the  church  he  did  not  long  retain  this  office. 
He  died  Sunday,  March  17,  1695.  By  the  terms  of  his  will, 
now  on  file  in  the  Probate  Office  at  Salem,  Mass.,  he  gave  to 
his  son  Joseph  "  my  dwelling  house  I  now  live  in,  together 
with  the  barn  and  all  the  outhouses  of  all  kinds,"  and  also 
certain  other  described  parcels  of  land  in  Newbury. 

On  the  southerly  side  of  the  green  lived  Robert  Morse  and 
Anthony  Morse,  Sr.  Jan.  19,  1658,  Robert  Morse,  tailor, 
sold  to  Amos  Stickney,  weaver,  "  all  that  house  and  three 
acres  of  land  situate,  lyeing  and  being  in  Newbury  above- 
sayd,  on  the  South  of  the  trayneing  greene  :  one  acre,  whereon 
the  house,  garden,  and  orch}'ard  is  Sittuate  upon,  is  bounded 
with  the  land  of  Richard  Brown  on  the  South,  the  trayneing 
green  on  the  North,  the  land  of  Anthony  Morse,  Sen'r,  on  the 
East,  and  the  mill  way  on  the  West  ;  the  other  tw^o  acres 
bounded  with  the  land  of  Captain  Gerrish  on  the  South, 
Richard  Brown's  land  on  the  East,  the  common  on  the  North 
and  West.  Witness,  W^'"  Thomas,  Peeter  Morse.  Acknowl- 
edged March  25,  1662"  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  2,  page  81 
(167). 


I04  OULD   NElVBrRY 

The  "mill  way"  to  which  reference  is  made  in  the  above 
deed  was  afterward  extended  to  Rowle)' ;  and  for  more  than 
a  century  all  the  travel  from  Boston,  Salem,  and  Ipswich 
came  over  Thorlay's  Bridge,  and  thence  by  this  road  to  New- 
bury. The  mill  was  built  by  John  Bishop,  at  Little  Ri\"er, 
near  the  place  now  known  as  the  Four  Rock  l^ridge. 
June  i8,  1663,  he  sold  to  Peter  Cheney  "  all  the  mill  and 
mill  house  latel}'  erected  in  Xewbur}',  with  the  liberty  of  the 
town  grant  to  me  to  sett  it  up  as  it  now  standeth  upon  the 
Little  river,  between  the  land  of  Nicholas  Noyes  on  the  south 
west  and  the  land  lately  i:)urchased  by  the  towne  of  Capt. 
William  Gerrish  on  the  north  east,  with  the  stones,  wheel, 
cog,  trough,  six  mill  bills,  iron  barr,  the  rope  that  puts  up 
the  stone,  and  a  shop  lately  sett  u})  neere  to  y"'  aboxe  said 
mill"  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  2,  page  196  (361). 

March  7,  1670,  "Peter  Cheney  jM'oposed  to  the  town  for 
half  an  acre  of  land  on  or  about  the  little  hill  this  side  the 
mill,  to  build  a  w^ind  mill  upon  to  grind  corn  for  the  town 
when  the  water  mill  fails."  This  request  was  granted  b}'  the 
town  "upon  condition  that  he  do  build  a  good  mill  to  answer 
the  end  proposed  for,  and  so  long  as  the  mill  is  made  and 
maintained  for  the  said  service,  and  no  longer"  (Histor)'  of 
Newbury,  page  89). 

The  meeting-house,  the  school-house,  and  the  tavern  were 
of  great  interest  and  importance  to  the  earl}'  settlers  of 
Newbury.  In  1639  Anthony  Somerby  was  granted  four 
acres  of  upland  "for  his  encouragement  to  keepe  schoole  for 
one  yeare  "  at  the  Lower  Green.  After  the  removal  of  the 
meeting-house  to  the  new  town  it  became  necessarv  to 
pi"o\ide  a  comi^etent  school-teacher  for  that  localitN'.  May 
14,  i('>53.  the  town  ordered  that  a  free  school  should  be 
kept  in  the  meeting-house;  and  the  master  was  recjuired 
"to  teach  all  such  inhabitants  children  as  shall  be  sent  to 
him  as  soon  as  the\-  know  their  letters  and  begin  to  read." 
In  165.S,  "for  want  of  a  latin  scoole."  the  inhabitants  of 
Xewbuiy  were  fined  XS  "  unles  the)"  b)'  the  next  Court 
])ro\)-de  a  latin-  Scoole  Master  according  to  law."  What 
answer   was   made    to    this    order  of    the    court    is   uncertain. 


<■'  TRAYNEING    GREEN''   AND    NEW   POND  105 

The  records  of  the  town  for  several  years  preceding  and 
subsequent  to  that  date  have  been  lost  or  destroyed,  and 
only  a  few  items  recorded  during  those  years  can  now  be 
found. 

In  1675  Henry  Short  was  appointed  schoolmaster  at  a 
salary  of  J[,^  for  the  first  half-year  and  6d.  a  week  for  every 
scholar.  Nov.  22,  1678,  "The  selectmen  proposed  to  the 
town  whether  they  would  continue  to  give  twenty  pounds  a 
yeare  out  of  the  town  rate  to  maintain  the  schoolmaster,  and 
they  voted  in  the  affirmative." 

April  13,  1680,  it  was  voted  that  the  town  should  pay  out  of  the 
towne  Rate  twenty  pounds  for  this  yeare  to  Mr.  Emerson  for  to  keep 
schoole. 

July  II,  1680,  the  records  of  the  General  Court  contain 
the  following  :  — 

Answer  to  the  peticion  of  seuerall  inhabitants  of  Newbery,  as  M"" 
Jno  Woodbridge,  Joseph  Hills,  Anthony  Som'"sby,  Rich^'  Dumer,  & 
others,  the  Court  Judgeth  it  meete  to  order  &  impower  the  Selectmen 
for  the  towne  of  Newbery,  for  the  encouragement  of  learning  &  main- 
tenance of  the  schole  master  there,  to  take  effectuall  care  to  rayse,  by 
way  of  rate  on  the  inhabitants,  the  some  of  sixty  pounds  P  anum  to  be 
ye  Sallery  of  the  Schoole  Master  there. —  Massachiiseiis  Bay  Colony 
Records,  volume  5,  page  272. 

Evidently,  Mr.  Emerson,  taking  advantage  of  this  order  of 
the  court,  declined  to  accept  less  than  ^60  a  year  for  his 
services.  In  August,  "the  town  voted  upon  Mr.  Emerson's 
answere  that  they  dismist  him  &  had  no  further  dependence 
on  him  to  teach  Schole  in  the  Town." 

Sept.  14,  1680,  at  a  towne  meeting  Lieut.  Woodman,  Samuel  Plumer, 
Thomas  Hale,  junior,  &  Robert  Long  chosen  &  sent  by  the  Towne  to 
Mr.  Emerson  to  treat  with  him  about  keeping  the  schoole,  who  asked 
him  whether  he  was  under  any  agreement  with  the  Towne  for  this 
yeare.  Hee  answered  he  was  under  no  agreement  with  the  Towne. 
Then  being  asked  whether  he  would  accept  of  twenty  pounds  a  yeare 
from  the  Towne  with  the  pay  of  the  schollars,  his  answer  was  hee 
would  not ;  then  we  asked  him  what  would  content  him,  his  answer  was 
three  score  pounds  a  yeare. 


Io6  OULD   XEWBURY 

We  haueing  made  our  Returne  to  the  Towne  concerning  what  is 
above  expressed.  The  Towne  sent  us  againe  to  Informe  Mr.  Emerson 
That  the  Town  had  dismist  him  and  liad  no  more  dependance  upon  him 
for  keeping  Schoole.  his  answer  was  he  would  take  no  notice  of  it 
e.xcept  wee  brought  the  names  of  tliose  that  voted  against  him  :  then  we 
answered  him,  It  was  voted  twice  :  and  the  first  time  two  held  up  their 
hands  for  him  &  in  the  last  vote  there  was  but  one  as  wee  could  dis- 

cerne. 

Archelaus  Woodman, 
Robert  Loxc;. 
Samuel  Plvmer. 
Thos  :   Hale.  Juxr. 

The  General  Court,  under  date  of  Oct.  13,  16S0,  or- 
dered :  — 

In  answer  to  the  peticoii  of  Newbery.  referring  to  the  schoolmaster 
there,  this  Court  doth  order  that  M''  Emerson,  present  incumbent  in 
said  schoole.  continew,  upon  the  grant  of  this  Court,  vntill  the  next 
General  Court,  and  that  there  may  be  further  Consideration  thereof,  in 
case  the  towne  be  still  vnsattisfied,  and  that  the  three  score  pounds 
ordered  by  this  Court  be  pajd  sajd  Emerson  accordingly. 

Oct.  22,  1680,  the  town  voted  "that  the  bargaine  which 
the  Comittee  hath  made  with  M""  Baily  to  keep  Schoole 
should  stand  and  was  approved  of  by  the  major  p'  of  the 
Towne."  It  was  also  voted  that  ]\Ir.  Baily  should  keep 
school  in  the  watch-house ;  and  a  committee  of  three  was 
chosen  to  make  a  settlement  with  Mr.  Emerson,  if  possible, 
"  and  report  what  they  have  done  ne.xt  lecture  day  after 
lecture." 

Just  how  this  troublesome  question  was  finally  settled  is 
somewhat  uncertain.  The  records  of  the  town  throw  no  ad- 
ditional light  on  the  subject.  The  General  Court,  however, 
ordered  May  11,  1681  :  — 

In  ans""  to  the  peticon  of  Nicholas  Noyes,  Samuel  Plumer,  etc.,  select- 
men of  Newbery,  humbly  desiring  that,  being  agreed,  the  late  order  for 
the  payment  of  sixty  pounds  P  am'im  to  their  then  schoole  master  may 
be  repealled,  the  Court  judgeth  it  meet  to  grant  the  peticon. 

Mr.  ICdward  Tompson  was  probabl}'  the  next  schoolmaster 
in  Newbury.      In  the  list  of  town    debts   for   the  year  1684  is 


''  TRAYNEING    GREEN''   AXD    NEW   POND  107 

an  item  of  ^^30  due  "  Mr.  Mclward  Tomson  for  keeping  school 
this  year." 

Mr.  Seth  Shove  was  undoubtedly  employed  as  the  successor 
of  Mr.  Tompson.  In  the  Letter  Book  of  Samuel  Sewall, 
volume  I,  page  49,  is  the  following  from 

Saaiuel    Sewall  to  John  Richardson. 

Sif\ —  I  am  informed  p  Mr.  Emerson  that  Mr.  Tomson  hath  a  call  to 
the  South  ward,  which  he  inclines  to ;  and  Brother  Gerrish  being  here 
to  see  his  Father  tells  me  that  Newbury  is  like  to  be  destitute  as  to  a 
School  master.  Now  there  is  an  Orphan,  one  Seth  Shove,  who  proceded 
Bachelour  the  last  Commencement,  who,  I  beleve,  might  be  to  accepta- 
tion Serviceable  in  that  Kind.  Wherefore,  if  you  find  Persons  so  far  In- 
clinable to  uphold  a  School  in  that  Town,  as  that  you  may  do  it  without 
prejudice  to  Yourself,  Should  Intreate  you  would  Promote  his  being 
there.  In  which  I  hope  you  may  pleasure  the  place,  and  Shew  Kindnes 
to  deceased  Mr.  Shove,  whose  worth  I  beleve  vou  Knew.  I  am  apt  to 
think  such  an  exercise  may  be  an  advantage  to  his  studies,  especially  re- 
specting the  tongues,  as  much  as  if  he  should  live  att  Cambridge  these 
three  years,  which  doubt  he  will  not  find  convenience  for.  He  has  liv'd 
in  our  house  sundry  years,  and  have  found  him  a  person  of  sobriety  and 
Commendable  behavior,  and  I  hope  going  abroad  will  benefit  him 
upon  that  account  and  qualify  that  modesty  or  whatever  it  be  that 
might  be  a  hindrance  of  good  manners.   .  .  . 

My  service  to  yourself  and  Mrs.  Richardson :  To  Mr.  Woodbrigg, 
with  whome,  if  you  see  cans,  you  may  Communicate  the  busines  of 
this  Letter.  Sir,  your  friend  and  serv* 

Above  is  copy  of  a  Letter  to  Mr.  Jn°  Richardson  P  Brother  Gerrish, 
dated  July  15,  1687. 

Oct.  18,  1687,  the  committee  appointed  by  the  town 
"  agreed  with  Mr.  Seth  Shove  to  be  ye  lattin  schoolmaster 
for  ye  town  of  Newbury  for  the  present  year."  Nov.  2, 
1687,  Judge  Sewall  wrote  to  Richard  Dummer,  Esq.,  "for  his 
Approbation  as  to  Seth  Shove's  Teaching  School  at  New- 
bury"  ;  and  Nov.  13,  1690,  he  wrote  Mr.  Seth  Shove  as 
follows  :  — 

If  you  have  named  the  selectmen  to  provide  themselves  of  another 
Schoolmaster,  send  me  word  of  it,  and  the  time,  by  the  first  conveyance. 
If  you  have  not  yet  done  it,  I  would  have  you  forbear  doing  it,  till  you 


I08  OULD   NEWBCKY 

hear  furtlier  from  me:  Because  I  have  an  Intimation,  as  if  Yarmouth 
people  are  universally  desirous  of  injoying  Mr.  Jno.  Cotton,  of  Pli- 
mouth,  who  supplied  them  in  .Mr.  Thornton's  absence.  I  have  it  only 
from  one  hand,  and  no  notice  from  Mr.  Thornton.  If  it  prove  so.  I 
would  not  have  you  be  discouraged.  The  Lord.  I  hope,  will  fit  you 
for  his  work,  and  call  you  to  it  in  the  most  convenient  time  and  place.* 

S.  .S. 

In  May,  1691,  the  town  voted  to  pay  Mr.  Seth  Shove 
"  thirty  pounds  for  the  year  ensuing  provided  he  will  be  our 
schoolmaster,"  etc.  In  1693  Mr.  John  Clark  was  employed 
to  assist  the  Rev.  John  Richardson  in  his  work  of  the 
ministry,  "and  also  to  keep  a  grammar  schoole."  June  5, 
1695,  the  town  voted  to  give  Mr.  Christopher  Toppan  "thirty 
pounds  a  year  so  long  as  he  shall  keep  a  grammar  and  a 
Writing  Schoole,  the  scholars  to  pay  as  they  did  to  Mr.  John 
Clarke." 

July  29,  1696,  the  town  offered  Mr.  Nicholas  Webster 
^30  a  year  in  country  pay  to  keep  a  grammar  school,  "  pro- 
vided he  demand  but  four  pence  per  week  for  Lattin 
scholars,  and  all  the  town's  children  come  to  him  to  read, 
write  &  cipher  without  pay." 

In  October,  1701,  Mr.  Richard  Brown  was  engaged  to 
assist  in  the  ministry  at  the  First  Parish  during  the  illness 
of  the  Rev.  Christopher  Toppan  ;  and  July  2,  1702,  the  town 
"  voted  to  give  Mr.  Richard  Brown  twenty  pounds  for  his 
yearly  salary,  and  to  have  fourpencc  a  week  for  his  Latin 
scholars." 

The  first  innkeeper  in  the  town  of  Newbury  was  h'rancis 
Plumer.  He  was  licensed  Sept.  3,  1635,  by  the  Cicneral 
Court  "to  keep  an  ordinary."  June  6.  1637,  the  court 
granted  John  Knight  license  "  to  keepe  an  ordinar)'  and  give 
intertainment  to  such  as  neede."  May  22,  1639,  "  Kdmond 
Greenlyf  of  Newberry  is  p'mited  to  kecpe  a  house  of  inter- 
tainment." This  license  was  exidentl}'  renewed  from  \ear 
to  year  until   1649,  when  lie  remoxed  to  Boston. 

Dec.    26,    1647,  (ieorge  Carr  was  granteil   libert)"  to   keep 

*  Letter  I'umk.  \ciluiiie  i,  page  112. 


''TRAYNEING    GA'EEJV"   AND    NEW    POND  109 

the  ferry  over  Merrimack  River  from  the  SaHsbury  side  ;  and 
Tristram  Coffin,  Sr.,  was  granted  the  same  privilege  from 
the  Newbury  side,  and  was  also  allowed  "  to  keep  an  ordi- 
nary and  retayle  wine."  His  house  of  entertainment  was 
probably  near  the  foot  of  Ferry  Lane  (now  Jefferson  Street), 
opposite  Carr's  Island. 

After  the  year  1647  all  questions  relating  to  the  keeping 
of  houses  of  entertainment  or  licenses  for  the  sale  of  strong: 
drink  were  referred  to  the  county  courts  for  consideration 
and  final  settlement. 

"  Henry  Somerby  was  licensed  to  keep  an  ordinary  instead 
of  M'  Greenleaf,"  in  September,  1650.  At  that  date  Mr. 
Somerby  probably  occupied  the  house  now  known  as  the 
Coffin  house.  He  died  in  1652  ;  and  his  widow  married 
Tristram  Coffin,  Jr.  At  her  decease  the  house  came  into 
the  possession  of  Nathaniel  Coffin,  her  youngest  son  by  this 
second  marriage  ;  and  his  descendants  still  own  the  property. 

In  1653,  Steven  Swett  was  allowed  to  keep  a  place  of 
public  entertainment,  and  his  license  was  annually  renewed 
until  the  year  1667.  He  owned  and  occupied  a  comfortable 
dwelling-house  on  the  westerly  side  of  the  high-road  near 
the  head  of  Muzzey's  Lane  (now  Marlborough  Street).  This 
house  was  afterward  purchased  and  remodeled  by  Hugh 
March,  and  was  for  many  years  liberally  patronized  by  the 
travelling  public* 

*  For  a  more  particular  account  of  this  famous  hostelry  tlie  reader  is  referred  to  the  sketch 
entitled  "  Blue  Anchor  Tavern." 


BURYING-GROUND  OF  THE  FIRST  PARISH 
IN   NEWBURY. 


When  the  inhabitants  of  Newbury  removed  from  the 
old  town  to  the  new  town  in  1646,  they  erected  a  new  meet- 
ing-house "  on  a  knowle  of  upland  by  Abraham  Toppan's 
barne."  This  land  was  originally  granted  and  laid  out  to 
John  Moulton,  who  subsequently  conveyed  it  to  Abraham 
Toppan.  A  record  of  this  transfer  was  made  in  the 
Proprietors'  Book.  In  1660,  a  new  place  of  worship  was 
erected  on  the  southerly  or  southeasterly  side  of  this  lot, 
and  in  1 700  still  another  house  was  built  a  few  rods  farther 
to  the  southeast.  The  house  erected  in  1700  was  occupied 
until  Jan.  25,  1868,  when  it  was  destroyed  by  fire,  and  dur- 
ing the  year  the  present  structure  was  built  on  the  opposite 
side  of  the  street. 

The  land  under  and  adjoining  the  meeting-houses  of  1646, 
1660,  and  1700,  with  subsequent  purchases  added  thereto, 
now  forms  the  burying-ground  of  the  First  Parish  in  New- 
bury. It  contains  about  three  acres.  The  first  burials 
were  made  in  a  space  not  exceeding  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  feet  square  in  the  northwest  corner.  Only  a  few  of 
these  early  graves  are  marked  by  stones,  and  it  is  probable 
that  nothing  more  than  a  simple  mound  of  earth  covered 
the  last  resting-place  of  many  of  the  early  settlers  of  the 
town. 

In  some  cases,  undoubtedly,  the  ancient  monuments 
erected  there  have  crumbled  to  decay  and  disappeared.  The 
oldest  stone  within  the  enclosure  marks  the  grave  of  Isaac 
Brown,  who  died  "ye  second  day,  third  month  of  1674." 
Others  of  a  later  date  are  much  worn,  and  the  inscriptions 
upon  them  can  only  be  deciphered  with  great  difficulty.      The 


112  OULD   NEWBURY 

first  ministers  of  the  church  in  Newbury,  and  nearly  all  their 
successors  in  office  down  to  the  beginning  of  the  present 
century,  were  buried  there.  Forty-five  or  fifty  years  ago 
some  of  the  stones  that  stood  at  the  head  of  these  graves, 
becoming  worn  and  dilapidated,  were  replaced  by  new  ones 
of  durable  dark  blue  slate. 

At  the  present  time  the  tablets  and  monuments  of  this 
old  graveyard  bear  the  names  of  the  following  persons  who 
have  been  regularly  ordained  and  settled  as  ministers  or 
teachers  in  the  First  Parish  of  Newbury  :  — 

Rev.  Thomas  Parker,  who  died  April  24,  1677. 

Rev.  Jame.s  Noyes.  who  died  Oct.  22.  1656. 

Rev.  John  Woodbridge,  who  died  March  17,  1695. 

Rev.  John  Richardson,  who  died  April  27,  1696. 

Rev.  Christopher  Toppan,  D.D.,  who  died  July  23,  1747. 

Rev.  John  Tucker,  D.D.,  who  died  March  22,  1792. 

Rev.  Abraham  Moor,  who  died  June  24,  1801. 

Other  prominent  names  found  on  tombstones  now  standing 
are  as  follows  :  — 

Captain  Paul  White,  who  died  in   1679. 

Richard  Dumer,  who  died  in  1679. 

Mrs.  Frances  Dumer,  widow  of  Richard  Dumer,  who  died  in  1682. 

Ann  Ordway,  wife  of  James  Ordvvay,  who  died  in  1687. 

Henry  Sewall,  who  died  May  17,  1700. 

Mrs.  Jane  Dummer  Sewall,  widow  of  Henry  Sewall.  who  died   in    1701. 

Col.  Daniel  Pierce,  who  died  in  1704. 

Tristram  Coffin,  Esq.,  who  died  in  i  703-4. 

Mrs.  Judith  Coffin,  widow  of  Tristram   Coffin,  who  died  in  1705. 

The  town  of  Newbury  granted  .April  25,  1655,  "to  Cajit. 
Paul  While  a  parcell  of  land,  not  exceeding  half  an  acre, 
about  Watts  his  cellar,  for  to  make  a  dock,  a  wharf,  and  a 
warehouse."  This  grant  was  accepted  by  Cai')tain  White; 
and  the  dock,  wharf,  and  warehouse  were  built  by  him  the 
following  year.  He  continued  to  own  and  occujiy  the  prop- 
erty until  his  death,  July  20,  1679. 

The    inscription    on    the    stone    that    marks   the  grave   of 


FIRST   PARISH   BURYING-GROUND  113 

Henry  Sewall  and  his  wife,  Jane  Uummer  Sevvall,  was  un- 
doubtedly written  by  Judge  Samuel  Sewall,  their  eldest  son, 
whose  words  of  tenderness  and  affection  spoken  at  the  burial 
of  his  mother  will  be  forever  associated  with  this  hallowed 
spot. 

The  following  epitaph  to  Colonel  Daniel  Pierce  gives  him 
a  superfluity  of  titles,  but  bears  truthful  testimony  to  his 
ability  and  faithfulness  :  — 

Here  lyes  interred  what  was  mortall  of  ye  Honourable  CoUonal 
Daniel  Pierce,  Esq^  who  having  faithfully  served  his  generation  both  in 
civill  &  military  station  fell  asleep  April  ye  22'i  1704,  aged  66. 

Here  lies  interred  a  soul  indeed, 
Whom  few  or  none  excelled. 
In  grace  if  any  him  exceed, 
He'll  be  unparallelled. 

On  the  tombstones  of  Tristram  Coffin  and  his  wife  are  the 
following  inscriptions  :  — 

To  the  memory  of  Tristram  Cofifin,  Esq.,  who  having  served  the  first 
church  of  Newbury  in  the  office  of  a  Deacon  20  years  died  Feb.  4, 
1703-4,  aged  72  years. 

On  earth  he  pur-chas-ed  a  good  degree, 
Great  boldness  in  the  faith  and  liberty. 
And  now  possesses  immortality. 

To  the  memory  of  Mrs.  Judith,  late  uirtuous  wife  of  Deac.  Tristram 
Coffin,  Esq^  who  having  lived  to  see  177  of  her  children  and  children's 
children  to  the  3'^  generation  died  Dec.  15,  1705,  aged  80. 

Graue,  sober,  faithful,  fruitfuU  vine  was  she, 
A  rare  example  of  true  piety. 
Widovv'd  awhile  she  wayted  wisht  for  rest. 
With  her  dear  husband  in  her  Savior's  brest. 

Not  far  from  these  graves  is  a  large  freestone  slab,  on 
which  the  following  epitaph  is  inscribed  :  — 

Here  lyes  interred  the  body  of  the  very  Hon.  William  Partridge,  Esq-", 
who  sustained  the  Government  of  New  Hampshire  for  several  years, 
and  departed  this  life  January  3''  1728,  &  in  the  ■]  f"^  year  of  his  age. 


114  OULD   NEWBURY 

After  the  overthrow  of  Sir  Edmund  Andros  as  governor  of 
the  colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  the  inhabitants  of  New 
Hampshire  were  greatly  disturbed  and  irritated  by  conflicting 
claims  to  the  ownership  of  lands  within  that  province. 
William  Partridge  espoused  their  cause,  and  was  urgently 
recommended  as  lieutenant-governor  to  the  Lords  of  Trade  in 
England.  He  was  a  native  of  Portsmouth,  a  shipwright  of 
extraordinary  mechanical  ability,  and  a  very  poi)ular  man. 
He  went  to  England,  and  returned  with  a  commission  dated 
June  6,  1696,  appointing  him  lieutenant-governor  and  com- 
mander-in-chief of  the  province  of  New  Hampshire  in  the 
absence  of  Governor  Samuel  Allen,  who  had  not  then  arrived 
in  America.  He  continued  in  this  office  under  the  adminis- 
tration of  Richard,  Earl  of  Bellemont,  who  came  to  New 
Hampshire  in  1699  for  a  brief  visit  of  eighteen  days,  and  de- 
parted leaving  the  lieutenant-governor  in  control  of  public 
affairs.  July  26,  1703,  Partridge  was  superseded  by  John 
Usher,  of  Boston,  who  after  a  long  struggle  succeeded  in 
obtaining  a  commission  from  the  queen,  appointing  him  lieu- 
tenant-go\'ernor.  Partridge  soon  after  remo\-ed  to  Newbur}% 
Mass.,  where  he  spent  the  rest  of  his  days  in  mercantile  pur- 
suits. He  had  a  son  Richard,  who  was  agent  for  the  province 
in  England,  and  a  daughter,  who  married  Jonathan  Belcher, 
governor  of  Massachusetts  and  New  Hampshire. 

Daniel  Noyes,  born  Oct.  23,  1673,  son  of  John  Noyes  and 
grandson  of  Nicholas  Noyes,  has  a  quaint  old  headstone, 
bearing  this  inscription  :  — 

Here  lyes  ye  body  of  Mr.  Daniel  Noyes.  who  died  March  ye  15"' 
1 71 5-16,  aged  42  years  4  months  and  23  days. 

As  you  are.  so  was  I. 
God  did  call  and  I  did  dv. 
Now  children  all, 
Whose  name  is  Noyes. 
Make  Jesus  Christ 
Your  only  choice. 

Timothy  Noyes,  born  Jime  23,  1655,  son  of  Nicholas  Noyes, 


FIRST   PARISH   BURYING-GROUND  115 

and  a  nephew  of  Rev.  James  Noyes,  has  an  epitaph  similar  in 
style  and  sentiment  :  — 

Here  lies  ye  body  of  Mr.  Timothy  Noyes,  who  died  August  ye  2i«' 

1 718,  aged  63. 

Good  Timothy  in 

His  Youthfull  days 

He  liued  much 

Unto  Gods  prays. 

When  age  came  one, 

He  and  his  wife 

They  liued  a  holy 

&  a  pious  life. 

Therefor  you  children 

Whos  nams  are  Noyes 

Make  Jesus  Christ 

Your  only  Choyse. 

The  oldest  gravestones  in  this  burying-ground  were  prob- 
ably brought  from  England,  and  are  noticeable  for  their  great 
width  and  thickness.  They  are  similar  in  design  and  work- 
manship, and  were  undoubtedly  imported  with  the  winged 
cherub's  head  carved  at  the  top,  and  the  scroll-work  or 
border  extending  down  each  side,  leaving  a  blank  space  for 
inscriptions  that  were  inserted  by  stone-cutters  here.  A 
hard,  dark,  flinty  slate  stone  from  North  Wales  was  much 
used,  though  occasionally  supplanted  by  a  native  granite 
bowlder  or  slab  in  its  rough  state,  inscribed  with  name  and 
date  only. 

The  lettering  upon  these  tombstones  does  not  seem  to  have 
been  executed  according  to  any  known  rule  ;  and  the  curious 
mixture  of  large  and  small  letters,  with  now  and  then  an 
omission  or  abbreviation,  gives  them  the  appearance  of  having 
been  carved  with  hieroglyphics. 

The'  modern  hearse  was  unknown  to  the  early  settlers  of 
New  England.  The  dead  were  usually  borne  to  the  grave  by 
friends  or  kinsmen.  "  Two  sets  of  bearers  were  appointed  : 
under-bearers,  usually  young  men  who  carried  the  coffin  on  a 
bier ;  and  pall-bearers, —  men  of  age,  dignity,  or  consanguin- 
ity,—  who  held    the  corners   of    the    pall  which   was   spread 


Il6  OULD   NEWBURY 

over  the  coffin  and  hung-  down  over  the  heads  and  bodies  of 
the  under-bearers.  As  the  coffin  was  sometimes  carried  for 
a  long'  distance,  there  were  frequently  appointed  a  double  set 
of  under-bearers,  to  share  the  burden." 

The  Church  of  England  provided  in  the  l^ook  of  Common 
Prayer  a  service  for  the  burial  of  the  dead  ;  but  the  men  who 
organized  the  colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  in  their  desire  to 
ignore  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  mother  church,  forbade 
the  reading  of  the  scriptures  as  well  as  prayers  at  funerals. 
Now  and  then  a  sermon  was  delivered  at  the  burial  of  some 
distinguished  j^erson  ;  but  the  first  prayer  of  which  special 
mention  is  made  was  offered  at  the  funeral  of  Pastor  Adams, 
of  Roxbury,  in  1683.  The  Boston  Ncivs  Letter  of  Dec.  31, 
1730,  commends  a  recent  burial  service  at  which  prayer 
was  said,  and  speaks  of  it  as  an  uncommon  and  noteworthy 
Christian  observance.  Still,  the  innovation  gained  ground 
very  slowly,  and  was  not  generally  adopted  until  the  begin- 
ning of  the  nineteenth  century. 

Judge  Sewall,  in  his  Diary,  mentions  several  instances  where 
the  committal  service  of  the  Church  of  England  was  read  at 
the  funeral  of  some  distinguished  friend  ;  but  he  condemns 
the  practice  in  unmeasured  terms. 

Having  attended  the  funeral  of  a  daughter  of  Colonel  By- 
field  at  Dorchester,  he  comments  on  the  exercises  at  the 
grave  as  follows  :  — 

Aug'  28,  1 70S.  Mrs.  Taylor  is  buried  in  Mr.  Stou,i.:;hton"s  Tomb: 
Bearers,  Col.  Foxcroft,  Mr.  Palmer.  Mr.  Newton,  Mr.  Mico:  Mr.  Pain, 
Mr.  Harris,  Col.  Byfield  there,  and  Mr.  Lyde  with  three  children,  Mr. 
Leverett  and  wife;  Mr.  Angier  and  wife.  Mr.  Sargeant  and  Col.  Hutch- 
inson were  there  with  their  wives  as  Relations,  dov''  and  his  Lady,  Maj. 
C}en'  Winthrop  and  his  Lady,  Mr.  .Secretary.  Sewall,  Mr.  E'"  Hutchin- 
son, Belcher,  Mr.  Bromfield  there;  and  nianv  otliers.  There  was  no 
Prayer  at  the  House;  and  at  the  (irave  Mr.  Myles  read  Comon  Prayer; 
which  I  reckon  an  Indignity  and  affront  done  to  Mr.  Stoughton  and  his 
Friends:  There  apears  much  Ingratitude  and  Baseness  in  it  because 
twas  Mr.  Danforth's  Parish,  and  Mr.  Danforth's  wife  is  Cousin  German 
to  Col.  Taylor:  and  Col.  Byfield  and  his  deceased  daughter  discenters  as 
I  supose.  1  was  mucii  surpris'd  and  grieved  at  it.  and  went  not  into 
the  burying  place. 


FIRST   PARISH   BURYING-GROUA-D  117 

A  few  days  later  he  writes  :  — 

At  3  P.M.,  Sepf  I,  1708,  the  Council  meets,  from  thence  they  goe  to 
the  Funeral  of  Mrs.  Lyde,  Col.  Byfield's  eldest  daughter.  Remember- 
ing what  I  had  met  with  at  her  Sister's  Burial  at  Dorchester  last  Satter- 
day,  I  slipt  from  the  Company  up  to  my  daughter's,  and  so  went  home, 
and  avoided  the  Funeral.  The  office  for  Burial  is  a  Lying,  very  bad 
office :  makes  no  difference  between  the  precious  and  the  vile. 


WATTS'  CELLAR  AND   FROG   POND. 


The  land  grants  made  by  the  proprietors  of  Newbury  and 
the  subsequent  conveyances  recorded  in  the  Essex  Registry 
of  Deeds  indicate  that  the  territory  from  "  Trayneing  Green  " 
to  Bartlett's  Cove,  and  from  South  and  Low  Streets  to  the 
Merrimack  River,  was  divided  into  house  lots  of  four  acres 
each,  and  assigned,  between  the  years  1642  and  1646,  to  the 
ninety-one  original  freeholders  whose  names  are  given  on 
page  292   of  Coffin's   History  of  Newbury. 

The  map  that  accompanies  this  sketch  gives  the  size  and 
shape  and  name  of  the  owner  of  every  lot  of  land  in  the 
vicinity  of  Watts'  Cellar  and  Frog  Pond,  and  also  the  loca- 
tion of  every  house  known  to  be  standing  in  that  portion  of 
Newbury,  in  the  year  1700.  The  map  is  drawn  upon  a  scale 
of  six  hundred  feet  to  an  inch,  by  Sidney  Perley,  Esq.,  of 
Salem,  Mass.,  from  measurements  taken  from  recorded  deeds, 
and  is,  therefore,  reliable  and  accurate. 

The  titles  from  the  original  grantees  in  1645  can,  in  most 
cases,  be  clearly  and  distinctly  traced  to  the  owners  of  the 
property  in  1700.  The  changes  in  the  ownership  of  the 
four-acre  lots,  included  within  the  limits  of  High  Street,  Ord- 
way's  Lane  (now  Market  Street),  Merrimack  Ri\-er,  and 
Chandler's  Lane  (now  Federal  Street),  are  gi\-en  in  detail 
on  subsequent  pages  of  this  book  from  memoranda  furnished 
by  Mr.  Perley. 

The  old  house  that  formerly  stood  on  the  southeasterly 
corner  of  Ordway's  Lane  (Market  Street)  and  tlic  country 
road  (High  Street)  has  been  suj^posed,  b)-  those  who  were 
somewhat  familiar  with  its  liistor)',  to  ha\-e  been  tlie  residence 
of  W'illiam  Morse  in  1679,  '^'^^'  ^'""-'  ^cene  of  the  witchcraft 
delusion  described  on  ]iages  122  to  134,  inclusi\e,  of  Coffin's 


WATTS'    CELLAR    AiVD    FROG    POND  12 1 

History  of  Newbury.  A  thorough  and  careful  examination 
of  the  deeds  of  conveyance  and  probate  records  made  for  the 
purpose  of  ascertaining  the  actual  facts  for  publication  in  this 
volume  proves  conclusively,  however,  that  the  residence  of 
William  Morse  in  1679  was  on  the  southeasterly  side  of 
Market  Square,  as  will  be  seen  by  reference  to  the  sketch 
descriptive  of  that  locality. 

The  land  on  the  corner  of  Ordway's  Lane  and  High  Street 
was  first  granted  to  Thomas  Browne,  and  came  into  the  pos- 
session of  John  Bartlett,  Sr.,  previous  to  the  year  1660,  as 
will  appear  in  the  abstract  of  title  to  be  given  on  a  subse- 
quent page.  Joseph  Morse  bought  the  land  April  3,  1701. 
In  the  deed  of  conveyance  no  house  is  mentioned.  He  re- 
tained possession  of  the  property  for  fort}^  years,  and  is  the 
first  person  of  that  surname  who  is  known  to  ha\'e  lived 
there.  He  probably  built  the  house  that  was  standing  on 
the  land  at  the  time  of  his  death. 

The  division  line,  running  nearly  east  and  west,  between 
the  land  of  Stephen,  Edmund,  and  John  Greenleaf  and  John 
Bartlett,  Hannah  Morse,  and  others,  is  nearly,  if  not  exactly, 
the  centre  of  the  street  afterward  laid  out  and  now  called 
Green  Street. 

Benjamin  Dole  and  John  Dole,  owners  of  the  land  at  the 
foot  of  Greenleaf's  Lane,  on  the  westerly  side  of  what  is  now 
Market  Square,  were  grandsons  of  Richard  Dole,  merchant, 
who  came  from  Bristol,  England,  and  settled  in  Newbury  in 
1639.  They  inherited  the  estate  from  their  father.  Dr.  John 
Dole,  who  was  a  ph)'sician,  and  the  eldest  son  of  Richard 
Dole.  The  following  deposition,  recorded  in  the  Essex 
Registry  of  Deeds  (Ipswich  Series,  book  3,  page  131  (98), 
has  some  historical  interest,  and  is  especially  worth  noting 
in  connection  with  this  description  of  Dr.  Dole's  old  home- 
stead :  — 

The  deposition  of  Thomas  Rawlings,  aged  about  28  years.  This 
deponent  testifieth  that  about  seven  years  &  foure  months  past,  being 
at  the  house  of  Richard  Dole,  heard  Mr.  ffuller  profer  and  engage  to 
Richard  Dole,  that  if  he  would  lett  his  Sonn  John  Dole  be  with  him,  as 
long  or  as  little  while   as  his  ffather  pleased,  and  did  also  engage  to 


122  OULD   NEWBURY 

teacli  and  instruct  the  sayd  John  Dole  in  his  art  lK:  calling  wh  he  did 
practice,  what  he  could,  and  maintain  him  freely  as  a  child  of  his  owne, 
exsept  clothinij.  all  which  the  sayd  ffuller  did  engage  to  doe  out  of  love 
&  respect  unto  Richard  Dole  and  his  wife  for  the  curtisies  that  the  sd 
ffuller  did  owne  he  had  received  from  the  sayd  Dole,  and  further  this 
deponent  saith  not. 

Sworn  in  Court  held  at  Ipswich  the  28  day  of  September.  1669. 

As  attest 

Robert  Lord,   Cleric. 
Recorded  6  (.S)  69. 

From  1725  to  1801  the  lliird  Parish  meeting-house 
occupied  the  triangular  piece  of  land  designated  on  the  map 
as  common  land,  and  now  known  as  Market  Square. 

Watts'  Cellar  was  probably  in  existence  long  before  the 
settlement  of  Newbury.  It  was  on  the  northerly  side  of  the 
highway,  near  the  bank  of  the  Merrimack  River,  and  was 
originally  used  for  the  storage  of  fish  by  the  few  brave  and 
intrepid  fishermen  who  occasionally  visited  the  New  England 
coast  at  that  early  day.  The  earliest  deeds  and  grants  men- 
tion this  old  landmark,  and  Greenleaf's  Lane  is  at  first  desig- 
nated "the  way  to  Watts  Cellar."  March  26,  1642,  the 
town  of  Salisbury  "  granted  to  Robert  Ring  two  acres  of 
upland  upon  the  island  over  against  Watts'  Sellar  to  be  em- 
ployed about  fishing  for  two  years,"  thus  indicating  that  the 
inhabitants  of  Salisbury  were  familiar  with  the  name  and 
location  of  Watts'  Cellar,  although  the  house  that  once  stood 
there  had  disappeared. 

The  middle  shipyard,  for  many  years  after  the  settlement 
of  the  new  town,  was  used  as  a  landing-place  for  boats  and 
for  the  unloading  of  hay,  wood,  and  timber.  It  was  con- 
venient and  easily  accessible  ;  and,  when  the  rixer  lots  were 
divided  in  1707,  it  was  allowed  to  remain  undistiu-betl. 
Vessels  were  j^robably  built  there  prex'ious  to  that  date, 
although  no  record  of  the  fact  exists.  March  11,  1711,  the 
town  voted  "that  Major  Henry  Somerby,  Captain  Sergant, 
and  Lieut.  Titcomb  sliall  ha\e  power  to  let  }e  buikling  )ard 
near  Watts'  cellar  (so  called)  unto  Col.  Partridge,  Mr. 
Clement,  and  Mr.  Hodges  on  such  terms  as  they  may  agree 
for." 


JVATTS'    CELLAR    AXD    FROG    POXD  123 

The  river  bank  below  this  building  place  was  low  and 
marsh)^  with  rocks  extending  out  into  the  river,  and  two 
narrow  inlets  between  these  ledges,  called  the  east  and  west 
gutters,  through  which  the  tide  ebbed  and  flowed.  In  1655 
Captain  Paul  ^^'hite  was  granted  half  an  acre  of  land  "  about 
Watts  his  Cellar  for  to  make  a  dock,  a  wharf,  and  a  warehouse 
upon "  ;  and  similar  grants  were  made  to  Richard  Dole  in 
1675,  and  to  Stephen  Greenleaf,  Daniel  Davison,  Nathaniel 
Clark,  and  others  in  1680. 

Tradition  asserts  that  a  narrow  creek  formerly  extended 
from  the  west  gutter  through  what  is  now  Market  Square, 
and  thence  through  the  land  owned  by  Captain  Peter  Coffin 
and  Thomas  Mood}-  to  the  river  at  the  foot  of  Chandler's 
Lane  ;  but  there  is  no  evidence  to  be  found  in  the  Registrv  of 
Deeds  at  Salem  to  establish  the  truth  of  this  statement. 

Thomas  Moody  was  a  son  of  Caleb  Moody,  and  for  many 
years  was  engaged  in  business  as  a  maltster  on  the  eight-acre 
lot  on  Water  Street,  between  Greenleaf's  Lane  and  Chandler's 
Lane.  The  southern  half  of  this  lot,  next  to  Chandler's  Lane, 
was  originally  granted  to  Aquila  Chase  in  1646,  and  the  other 
half  was  owned  by  his  brother-in-law,  David  Wheeler  ;  and 
there,  on  a  certain  memorable  occasion,  was  committed  a 
very  grave  offence,  concerning  which  the  records  of  the 
county  court  state  that  in  the  month  of  September,  1646, 
"Aquila  Chase  and  wife  and  David  Wheeler  of  Hampton 
were  presented  for  gathering  peas  on  the  Sabbath  day." 
For  this  offence  they  were  ordered  to  be  "  admonished,"  but 
the  fines  usually  imposed  in  such  cases  were  remitted  by  the 
court.  Aquila  Chase  and  David  Wheeler  remained  in  New- 
bury notwithstanding  this  unpleasant  episode,  and  retained 
possession  of  these  two  lots  of  land  for  ten  or  twelve  years, 
as  will  appear  from  an  examination  of  the  titles  hereafter 
given. 

Colonel  Daniel  Pierce  probably  owned,  at  one  time,  nearly 
all  the  land  on  the  southerly  side  of  Chandler's  Lane  from 
Merrimack  River  to  the  country  road  (High  Street).  His 
dwelling-house  and  malt-houses  in  the  year  1 700  occupied 
the  lower,  or  northeasterly,  corner  of  this  lot,  nearly  opposite 


124 


OULD    NEWBURY 


the  estate  then  owned  by  Tliomas  Moody,  maltster.  His 
will,  dated  Auli;.  12,  1701,  and  proved  May  8,  1704,  gives  to 
his  grandson,  John  Wainwright,  "  my  house  standing  on  the 
north  corner  of  that  land  my  Malt  house  stands  on  "  ;  and  in 
the  di\ision  of  his  estate  this  land  is  bounded  ow  Chandler's 
Lane,  the  highway,  and  land  of  George  Pierce  and  William 
Johnson.  To  his  son  Joshua  he  gives  "my  now  dwelling 
house  with  the  malt  house,"  and  to  his  son  Thomas  "the 
house  I  built  for  him  on  Malt  house  land." 


THE    MARCH-HASKELL    HOUSE. 


March  11,  1698-9,  Colonel  Daniel  Pierce,  for  love  and 
other  considerations,  conveyed  to  Dr.  Humphre)'  Bradstreet, 
"who  is  the  husband  of  Sarah,  daughter  of  m}-  brother 
Joshua  ]'iei"ce,"  one  acre  and  twent}'  rods  of  land  (Essex 
Deeds,  book  18,  page  57),  to  which  Dr.  I^radstreet  subse- 
quently added  the  adjoining  U)t  purchased  of  Stephen  Jaqui.sh, 
as  shown  on  the  map. 

Henry  Lunt,  Jr.,  owned  land  on  the  southeasterly  corner 
of  Chandler's  Lane  and  the  countr}'  road  as  early  as  the  year 
1680.  lie  sold  to  Hugh  March,  Aug.  20.  1694,  a  lot  of 
two  acres,   measuring  lwenl>'   rods  on   tlie  countrv  road   and 


WATTS'    CELLAR    AXD    FROG    POND  125 

sixteen  rods  on  Chandler's  Lane.      No  buildings  are  mentioned 
(Essex  Deeds,  book  10,  leaf  65). 

Jan.  15,  1703-4,  Hugh  March  sold  to  Benaiah  Titcomb 
one  dwelling-house,  one  barn,  one  shop,  and  two  acres  of 
land  "bounded  on  the  highway  Southwesterly  and  against 
Chandler's  Lane  Northwesterly"  (book  27,  leaf  170). 

Jan.  27,  1709-10,  Cornet  Benaiah  Titcomb  sold  to  his  son 
Edmund,  who  was  then  living  there,  the  house  and  land 
"  bounded  northwest  by  Chandler's  Lane,  Southwest  by  ye 
country  road,  Southeast  by  Henry  Lunt,  Junior,  northeast  by 
John  Calef  "  (book  23,  leaf  147). 

Aug.  8,  1 716,  Edmund  Titcomb  sold  to  Joshua  Beck  two 
acres  of  land,  with  "all  the  buildings  thereon  except  the 
shop,"  bounded  and  described  substantially  as  above  (book 
30,  leaf  152). 

Dec.  30,  1724,  Joshua  Beck  sold  to  Benjamin  Peirce  the 
above-described  land,  "  with  all  the  housing  now  standing  on 
said  land"  (book  44,  leaf  173). 

May  17,  1 771,  Benjamin  Pearce  sold  to  Mark  Haskell 
about  one  and  three-quarters  acres  of  land  "  where  I  now  live 
in  Newburyport,  with  my  now  dwelling  house,"  on  the  corner 
of  High  Street  and  King  Street  (now  Federal  Street)  (book 
129,  leaf  163). 

The  house  above  described  was  owned  and  occupied  by 
the  descendants  of  Mr.  Mark  Haskell  until  the  year  1892, 
when  it  was  taken  down  and  a  new  house  erected  on  the  site. 

Frog  Pond,  like  Watts'  Cellar,  was  evidently  well  known  to 
the  early  settlers  of  Newbury  ;  and  grants  of  land  in  the  new 
town,  previous  to  1646,  frequently  mention  the  pond,  and 
prove  conclusively  that  it  was  then,  as  now,  a  natural,  and 
not  an  artificial,  sheet  of  water. 

In  the  abstract  of  title  to  the  property  owned  by  Stephen 
and  Edmund  Greenleaf  on  the  corner  of  Greenleaf's  Lane  and 
the  country  road,  in  the  year  1700,  the  grants  and  convey- 
ances to  and  from  John  Bond,  John  Bishop,  and  Daniel 
Pierce,  furnish  all  the  evidence  needed  to  show  that  the  pond 
was  in  existence  as  early  as  the  year  1646. 


MARCH-HASKELL    HOUSE  -  A    CORNER    OF    THE    LIVING-ROOM. 


MARCH-HASKELL    HOUSE  -  FIRE-PLACE    IN    SOUTHWEST    CHAMBER. 


WATTS'    CELLAR    AXD    FROG    POND  127 

At  a  later  date  the  records  of  the  town  of  Newbury  con- 
tain frequent  allusions  to  this  old  landmark.  At  a  general 
meeting  held  March  2,  1667,  the  following  vote  was  recorded 
by  Anthony  Somerby,  the  town  clerk  : — 

In  consideration  of  Penuel  Titcomb  his  resigning  &  yealding  up  to 
the  Town  five  &  twenty  rods  of  his  land  joining  unto  land  by  the  Old 
house  and  his  Aple  trees,  and  so  running  over  part  of  his  garden  as  it  is 
bounded  with  stakes.  &  for  the  Towns  use  forever,  to  enjoy  which  he 
doth  by  these  presents.  There  is  laid  out  to  Penuel  Titcomb  a  parcel  of 
land  about  his  house  by  Frog  pond  twenty  five  rod  Square,  as  it  is 
bounded  with  stakes  at  the  four  Corners,  to  enjoy  to  him  &  his  heirs  for 
ever. 

At  a  general  town  meeting  held  in  March,  1667,  ''William 
Titcomb  proposed  for  the  exchange  of  a  parcell  of  land  neer 
the  well  at  the  frog  pond  to  give  land  proportionable  to  set 
his  dwelling  house  upon.  The  Towne  voted  that  he  should 
have  so  much,  provided  it  exceed  not  a  quarter  of  an  acre. 
Archelaus  Woodman,  John  Bartlett,  senior,  &  Richard 
Knight  were  appointed  to  lay  it  out." 

At  this  time  sheep-raising  was  one  of  the  leading  industries 
of  the  town  ;  and  the  common  land  from  Parker  River  to  Arti- 
choke River  furnished  the  pasturage  for  five  flocks  of  sheep, 
averaging  nearly  one  thousand  to  each  flock.  These  sheep 
were  attended  by  shepherds,  and  kept  within  certain  pre- 
scribed limits.  The  "  frog  pond  flock  "  was  allowed  the  range 
of  "  Aps  swamp  from  James  Smith  to  George  Marches  bridge 
and  dismal  ditch  and  Robin's  pound." 

Hill  Street  was  laid  out  at  a  very  early  date,  and  James 
Smith  owned  land  on  the  westerly  side  of  it  near  the  town 
commons,  as  appears  from  the  following  petition  :  — 

July  15,  1687,  the  humble  petition  of  Hugh  March  &  Thomas 
Titcomb  to  the  town  of  Newbury,  Whereas,  as  our  land  butteth  upon 
the  highway  or  street  called  the  Hill  Street,  we  humbly  request  that  we 
may  have  the  benefit  of  free  passage  as  in  other  of  his  Majesty's  high- 
ways. 

Hugh  March,  Junior, 

Thomas  Titcomb. 


128  OULD   XEIVBURY 

The  town  granted  the  proposition  above  said,  the  s"d  street  to  be  laid 
open  on  the  first  day  of  November  next,  &  so  to  lye  open  perpetually. 

Dissent  James  Smith.* 

The  pond  at  Pine  Swamp,  with  the  land  adjoining  the 
same,  owned  b)-  I'enuel  Titcomb  and  John  Stickney  in  the 
year  1700,  was  originally  granted  to  William  Titcomb  and 
Amos  Stickne}'  by  an  order  adopted  Sept.  19,  1670,  as 
follows  :  — 

Concerning  William  Titcomb  &  Amos  Stickney,  their  proposition  for 
the  Little  Pine  Swamp  that  is  enclosed  by  their  Land.  The  Towne 
granted  the  Little  Pine  Swamp  aforesaid  to  be  their  propriety,  as  they 
both  shall  agree,  to  be  to  them,  their  heirs  &  assigns  for  ever,  w'^  skirts 
of  y'^'  comon  adjoyneing,  provided  that  they  make  &  maintaine  a  suffi- 
cient fence  about  the  hole  for  the  safety  of  the  Townes  cattle  from  time 
to  time. 

William  Titcomb  died  Sept.  24,  1676,  and  Amos  Stickney 
died  Aug.  29,  1678  ;  and  the  Pine  Swamp  came  into  the 
possession  of  Penuel,  son  of  William  Titcomb,  and  John,  son 
of  Amos  Stickney.  The  lofty  pine  trees  once  growing  in 
that  neighborhood  have  disappeared  ;  and  the  area  of  the 
swamp  is  now  reduced  to  a  shallow  basin,  on  the  southerl}' 
side  of  Oak  Hill  Cemetery,  where  the  water  collects  and 
forms  a  small  pond,  as  marked  upon  the  map. 

On  the  corner  of  the  country  road  and  the  way  leading  to 
the  town's  common  stood  in  the  year  1 700  a  dwelling-house, 
with  twent)'-eight  acres  of  land,  owned  by  Henry  Somerby. 
As  early  as  1648  a  portion  of  this  property  was  in  the  posses- 
sion of  Anthony  Somerby,  the  first  schoolmaster  of  the  town. 
Among  the  grants  and  con\-e}ances  recorded  in  the  Proprie- 
tors' ]^()ok  are  the  following:  — 

May  16,  164S,  .Anthony  .Somerl)y  was  granted  a  house  lot  in  tlie  new 
town,  in  the  upper  nine  lots,  of  4  acres,  .  .  .  bounded  by  Henrv  Lunt 
on  the  east,  Samuel  .Scullard  west.  Street  north  (X:  common  on  the  South. 

Richard  Ikirtlet  did  acknowledge  May  i  ^).  1 C14N.  for  and  in  consid- 
eration of  eighteen  shillings  already  received  in  work   and  the  plowing 

*  .See  Newbury  Records. 


WATTS'    CELLAR    AND    FROG    POND  129 

and  breaking  up  of  four  acres  of  land,  to  have  sold  unto  Anthony 
Somerby  of  Newbury  all  that  four  acre  lot  with  the  fences  thereto  be- 
longing, being  in  the  upper  nine  lots  w^'^  formerly  was  laid  out  for  an 
house  lot  for  John  Pemberton,  w^''  John  Pemberton  sold  to  his  brother 
James  Pemberton.  and  James  Pemberton  did  also  exchange  w*  Richard 
Bartlet  for  a  portion  of  land  in  little  north  field,  the  which  four  acres 
being  bounded  w*  the  land  of  iVP  Snelling  on  the  east.  John  Bishop 
land  on  the  west,  and  the  street  on  the  north  &  "common  on  the  South, 
and  to  remain  unto  Anthony  Somerby  and  his  heirs  for  ever. 

Witness,  W-i  Titcomb. 

Henry  Lunt  ack™i  April  2,  1648,  That  for  25  bush"  of  Wheat  &  28 
bush'^  of  Indian  corne  to  have  sold  to  Anthony  Somerby  4  acres  in  that 
verge  of  lots  called  the  upper  nine  lots  in  the  Newtown  on  West  s''  of  s'l 
A.  Somerby"s  land.  A.  Woodman  east,  street  north,  common  south. 

March  25,  1659,  Anthony  Somerby  bought  of  Gyles  Crom- 
lome  and  wife  Alice  four  acres  of  land  in  the  upper  nine  lots, 
"  bounded  west  by  Peter  Godfrey,  north  by  the  streete,  south 
by  the  common,  east  by  the  land  sold  by  Richard  Fitts  to 
Anthony  Somerby."  And  the  same  day  he  bought  of 
Richard  Fitts  and  wife  Sarah  four  acres,  "  bounded  east  by 
Anthony  Somerby,  west  with  four  acre  lot  Gyles  Cromlome 
sold  to  Anthony  Somerby,  north  by  street,  south  by  the 
Common"    (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  4,  leaf  238). 

Abiel  Somerby,  born  Sept.  8,  1641,  only  child  of  Anthony 
Somerby,  died  Dec.  27,  1671,  leaving  several  children.  An- 
thony Somerby  died  July  31,  1686.  In  his  will  dated  Jan. 
22,  1685,  proved  Oct.  20,  1686,  he  gives  "to  his  grandson 
Henry  Somerby  my  now  dwelling  house,  barn  and  orchard 
and  twenty-eight  acres. of  arable  and  pasture  land  adjoining 
the  house." 

Colonel  Henry  Somerby,  by  his  will  dated  April  5,  1722, 
proved  Dec.  23,  1723,  devised  to  his  brother  Abiel  "my  farm 
house  where  I  formerly  lived,  with  twenty  four  acres  of  land 
adjoining  the  same." 

Abiel  Somerby  sold  to  his  son  Abiel  Somerby,  Jr.,  July 
30,  1744,  house,  seven  acres  of  land,  east  half  of  barn,  etc. 
(Esse.x  Deeds,  book  85,  page  201). 

Oct.    II,  1749,  Abiel   Somerby,  Jr.,  sold  a  portion   of   the 


130  OULD    NEWBURY 

above  seven  acres  of  land  to  Daniel  Farnham  (book  102, 
page  208). 

Feb.  20,  1756,  Abiel  Somerby,  Jr.,  sold  to  Daniel  Farnham 
about  twenty  square  rods  of  land  on  the  corner  of  the  country 
road  and  the  way  leading  to  the  town's  common,  and  adjoin- 
ing the  land  previousl}'  purchased  by  the  said  P^arnum  (book 
102,  page  277). 

Nov.  10,  1768,  the  heirs  and  devisees  of  Abiel  Somerby 
sold  to  Daniel  Farnham  a  small  strip  of  land  in  the  rear  of 
the  two  lots  previously  bought  by  him  (book  122,  page  5). 

Daniel  Farnham,  the  purchaser  of  this  property,  was  born 
in  York,  Me.,  in  171 9.  He  graduated  from  Harvard  College 
in  1739,  and  in  July  of  the  following  year  married  Sybil, 
daughter  of  the  Rev.  Samuel  Angier,  of  Watertown,  Mass. 
After  his  admission  to  the  bar  he  removed  to  Newburyport, 
and  commenced  the  practice  of  law.  On  the  land  bought  of 
Abiel  Somerby  he  erected  a  large  square  dwelling-house  a 
little  back  from  the  street.  Three  large  elm-trees  stood  in 
front,  and  the  garden  was  enclosed  by  a  solid  brick  wall, 
which  gave  a  substantial  appearance  to  the  estate.  He  was  a 
man  of  ability,  and  took  an  active  part  in  the  administration 
of  public  affairs.  He  was  one  of  the  prominent  petitioners 
for  the  incorporation  of  Newburyport,  the  person  to  whom 
the  warrant  for  its  first  town  meeting  was  directed,  the  mod- 
erator of  its  first  annual  meeting,  and  the  chairman  of  its  first 
board  of  selectmen.  The  Hon.  Fben  F.  Stone,  in  a  manu- 
script sketch  of  Colonel  Farnham,  says: — • 

In  the  early  special  meetings  of  the  town  relating  to  the  Stamp  Act 
and  other  measures  of  England  to  extort  a  revenue  from  the  Colonies, 
before  all  hope  of  a  peaceable  adjustment  of  the  controversy  was  aban- 
doned, he  took  an  active  and  important  part.  But  when  the  opposition 
of  the  Province  to  the  policy  of  the  Crown  had  passed  the  point  consist- 
ent with  loyalty,  and  every  citizen  was  compelled  to  choose  between  two 
courses,  neither  of  which  was  free  from  doubt  and  peril.  Colonel  I'"arn- 
ham.  like  the  great  majority  of  those  who  were  well  situated  under  the 
subsisting  relations  between  the  Colonies  and  the  Ciovcrnment  of  Eng- 
land, and  who  could  find  in  the  alleged  grievances  no  sut'ticient  e.xcuse 
for  disloyalty  or  rebellion,  remained  true  to  liis  principles  and  stood  by 
the   King.      Ardent,  high-spirited,  and   imi)etuous.  lie  disdained  to  viekl 


WATTS'    CELLAR    AND    FROG    POND  131 

to  the  suggestions  of  prudence  which  controlled  the  conduct  of  some  of 
his  friends,  and  boldly  denounced  the  leading  Whigs  and  liberty  men  as 
law-breakers  and  rebels. 

He  was  earnest  and  sincere  in  his  support  of  the  policy 
and  principles  of  the  established  government,  and  un- 
doubtedly rendered  himself  obnoxious  by  his  efforts  to  check 
the  tumult  and  excitement  that  preceded  the  Revolution. 
He  was  a  Tory,  but  still  an  able  and  conscientious  citizen, 
who  dared  to  express  his  views  and  opinions  upon  the  im- 
portant questions  of  the  da}'. 

In  a  recent  article  by  Professor  Moses  Coit  Tyler,  pub- 
lished in  the  Amci-icaji  Historical  Review,  the  writer  sa}'s  : 
"  Hardly  have  we  known,  seldom  have  we  been  reminded, 
that  the  side  of  the  Loyalists,  as  they  called  themselves,  of 
the  Tories,  as  they  were  scornfully  nicknamed  by  their  oppo- 
nents, was  even  in  argument  not  a  weak  one,  and  in  motive 
and  sentiment  not  a  base  one,  and  in  devotion  and  self-sacri- 
fice not  an  unheroic  one." 

Daniel  Farnham,  misrepresented  and  reviled  by  his  per- 
sonal friends  and  political  associates,  resisted  to  the  utmost 
of  his  ability  every  act  likely  to  hasten  the  separation  of  the 
colonies  from  the  mother  country.  He  died  May  18,  1776, 
only  a  few  weeks  before  the  declaration  of  independence. 
His  tombstone,  in  the  Old  Hill  bur\'ing-ground,  in  addition  to 
his  name  and  the  date  of  his  birth  and  death,  bears  the  fol- 
lowing inscription  :  — 

For  we  must  needs  die.  and  are  as  water  spilt  on  the  ground  which 
cannot  be  gathered  up  again. —  2  Samuel  14  :    14. 

In  the  division  of  his  estate  his  house  and  land  on  Hidi 

o 

Street,  opposite  the  head  of  Market  Street,  were  assigned  to 
his  son  William  Farnham. 

April  1 ,  1 8 1 6,  William  Farnham  sold  the  house  and  land 
to  Lawrence  Sprague  (Essex  Deeds,  book  209,  page  118). 

April  2,  1 816,  Lawrence  Sprague  gave  a  mortgage  deed  of 
the  property  to  Jonathan  Marsh  (book  209,  page  118)  ;  and 
possession  was  probably  taken  under  foreclosure,  as  no  deed 
of  conveyance  is  recorded. 


132  OULD   XFJVBURY 

Jonatlian  Marsh  died  March  7,  1825;  and  administration 
on  his  estate  was  granted  March  29,  1825,  David  Marsh, 
Jr.,  of  Haverhill,  being  appointed  administrator.  Lydia  A. 
Marsh,  Robert  Marsh,  John  Marsh,  Nathaniel  Marsh,  and 
others  signed  the  petition  as  heirs  to  the  estate.  In  the  in- 
ventory mention  is  made  of  "house  and  other  buildings  and 
fifty-si.\  rods  of  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same  on  High 
Street   in   Newburyport." 

The  Rev.  John  Marsh,  of  Haddam,  Conn.,  and  others  con- 
veyed a  part  of  the  house  and  land  to  David  Marsh,  2d 
(Essex  Deeds,  book  241,  pages  i,  2,  and  3). 

The  deeds  from  David  Marsh,  2d,  and  other  heirs  to  Na- 
thaniel Marsh  are  not  recorded. 

Nathaniel  Marsh  died  in  December,  1838  ;  and  his  widow, 
Sarah,  was  appointed  administratrix  of  his  estate  the  first 
Tuesday  in  January,  1839.  The  inventory  mentions  "  man- 
sion house  on  High  Street." 

Dec.  2,  1865,  Adeline  M.  Merriam,  of  Topsfield,  and 
others,  heirs  of  Nathaniel  Marsh,  conveyed  to  William  E. 
Marsh  house  and  fifty-seven  rods  of  land  on  the  corner  of 
High  and  Auburn  Streets,  Newburyport  (book  695,  page  27). 

Nov.  6,  1 87 1,  William  E.  Marsh  and  wife  L^llen,  of  Plain- 
field,  N.J.,  sold  to  Henry  P.  Toppan,  of  Newburyport,  "house 
and  land  bought  of  Adeline  M.  Merriam  and  others,"  de- 
scribed as  above  (book  840,  page  75). 

Nov.  14,  1 871,  Henry  P.  Toppan  sold  the  estate  to  the 
city  of  Newburyport  (book  840,  page  31). 

The  old  mansion  house  built  by  Daniel  I^'arnham  was  re- 
moved to  another  location,  and  subse<.|uentl\-  destro}ed  by 
fire.  In  1872  the  city  of  Newburyport  erected  on  the  corner 
of  High  and  Auburn  Streets  the  large  brick  building  known 
as  the  "  Kelly  School-house." 

On  the  southwesterly  side  of  High  Street  from  P^-og  Pond 
to  Chandler's  Dane  (now  P'ederal  Street)  there  were  only  two 
houses  standing  in  I700,^()ne  on  land  owned  b\-  Benjamin 
Coker,  and  the  other  on  land  owned  1)\'  John  Weed. 


IVATTS'    CELLAR    AND    FROG    POXD  133 

Brown's  Lane,  or  Brown  Street,  laid  out  by  Moses  Brown 
about  the  year  1803,  in  order  to  gain  access  to  the  rear  land 
that  he  then  owned,  follows  nearly,  if  not  exactly,  the  division 
line  between  the  land  of  Benjamin  Coker  and  the  land  of 
John  Bartlett,  Joseph  Titcomb,  and  Penuel  Titcomb,  from  the 
country  road  (High  Street),  as  marked  on  the  map.  For 
confirmation  of  this  statement  see  conveyance  from  Enoch 
Thurston  to  Moses  Brown,  recorded  in  book  173,  page  75. 

Robert  Coker  was  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Newbury. 
In  the  removal  to  the  new  town  in  the  year  1646  he  was 
granted  land  on  both  sides  of  the  country  road.  He  built  a 
house,  which  he  owned  and  occupied  for  many  years,  on  the 
northeasterly  side  of  the  road  at  the  corner  of  Chandler's 
Lane.  He  died  May  19,  1680.  His  will,  dated  Sept.  20, 
1678,  proved  March  29,  1681,  gave  to  his  son  Benjamin  six 
acres  of  land  on  the  southerly  side  of  the  highway,  "  next  to 
Daniel  Lunt's  "  ;  and  to  his  son  Joseph  the  remainder  of 
the  lot,  consisting  of  ten  or  eleven  acres,  on  the  same  side  of 
the  way  or  street. 

Dec.  26,  1692,  Joseph  Coker  conveyed  to  his  son  Benjamin 
Coker  "  three  acres  of  land  in  the  great  field,"  bounded 
northeasterly  on  the  highway   (book   26,  page  91). 

Benjamin  retained  possession  of  this  land  for  more  than 
fifty  years.  He  also  acquired  adjoining  land,  by  purchase  or 
by  inheritance,  from  his  father's  estate. 

Feb.  24,  1745,  Benjamin  Coker  sold  to  Michael  Shute 
three  acres  of  land  in  the  great  field  on  the  southwesterly 
side  of  the  road  (book  88,  page  108). 

May  7,  1756,  Michael  Shute  sold  the  land  to  Parker  Noyes 
(book  103,  page  162). 

In  the  will  of  Deacon  Parker  Noyes,  dated  June  28,  1782, 
and  proved  May  26,  1788,  he  gives  to  his  son  Silas  "three 
acres  of  land  in  Coker' s  field." 

May  8,  1797,  Dorcas  Noyes,  widow  and  administratrix  of 
Silas  Noyes,  conveyed  to  Ebenezer  Stocker  three  acres  of 
land  on  High  Street  (book  162,  page  241). 

F'eb.  18,  1800,  Ebenezer  Stocker  sold  to  F^benezer  Wheel- 


134  OULD   NEWBURY 

wri^iit  one  and  one-half  acres  of  land  i)urchased  of  Dorcas 
No}-es,  widow  of  Silas  Noycs  (book  i66,  page  264). 

On  the  other  half  of  this  lot  I'^benezer  Stocker  built  the 
house  afterward  i)urchased  b\'  William  Wheelwright,  Esq., 
and  now  known  as  the  Old  Ladies'  Home;  and  Ebenezer 
Wheelwright  built  on  the  land  conveyed  to  him  the  house 
now  owned  and  occupied  by  the  writer  of  this  sketch.  Sub- 
sequent deeds  and  conveyances  of  "one  and  one-half  acres  of 
land  with  the  buildings  thereon,  formerly  the  j^roperty  of 
Ebenezer  Wheelwright,"  are  as  follows  :  — 

Jan.  I,  1 812,  Ebenezer  and  Abraham  Wheelwright  to  Peter 
LeBreton,  merchant, —  bounded  northeast  by  High  Street, 
southeast  b)'  land  of  heirs  of  Nathaniel  Carter,  southwest  by 
land  of  heirs  of  Moses  Brown,  northwest  by  land  of  the  late 
Ebenezer  Stocker  (book  196,  leaf  112). 

The  will  of  Peter  LeBreton,  dated  April  9,  181 1,  recorded 
in  the  Probate  Office,  book  83  (old  series),  leaf  216,  gives  to 
his  son  Peter  LeBreton  and  daughter  P^lizabeth  Stickney  the 
remainder  and  residue  of  his  estate  after  the  payment  of  cer- 
tain legacies. 

Dec.  13,  1 81 3,  l^lizabeth  LeBreton,  widow,  Peter  Lel^reton, 
merchant,  Daniel  Stickney,  merchant,  and  Elizabeth,  his  wife, 
quitclaim  to  P2benezer  Wheelwright  (book  206,  leaf  42). 

June  22,  1 82 1,  PLbenezer  WHieelwright  to  James  Meyer 
(book  226,  leaf  162). 

Oct.  7,  1824,  James  Meyer  mortgages  to  Newburyport 
Bank  (book  236,  leaf  118). 

May  4,  1827,  Oilman  White,  deputy  sheriff,  to  Jeremiah 
Nelson  (book  247,  leaf  3). 

P'eb.  26,  1830,  Newburyport  Bank  assigns  mortgage  to 
Jeremiah  Nelson  (book  257,  leaf  93). 

P^'b.  26,  1830,  Jeremiah  Nelson  to  William  Alexander 
(book  257,  leaf  93). 

April,  1834,  William  Alexander  to  John  Chickering  (book 
292,  leaf  237). 

Sei)t.  4,  1840,  John  Chickering  to  Samuel  'P.  l)el"^)rd  (book 
322,  leaf  260). 

Sept.  9,  1840,  Samuel  'P.  DePord  to  Sarah  Chickering 
(book  322,  leaf  260). 


WATTS'    CELLAR    AXD    FROG    POXD  I3S 

Nov.  lO,  1 87 1,  heirs  of  Sarah  Chickermg  to  John  J.  Cur- 
rier (book  842,  leaf  30). 

The  title  to  the  estate  owned  by  John  Weed  can  be  traced 
with  a  reasonable  degree  of  accuracy  down  to  the  present 
time,  but  it  is  somewhat  uncertain  whether  the  house  now 
standing  on  the  lot  was  built  previous  to  the  year  1700. 
Many  changes  and  transfers  of  the  property  are  recorded. 
At  one  time,  apparently,  the  house  was  divided,  and  had  two 
owners,  Richard  Pike  and  Nathan  Allen.  Subsequently  the 
lean-to  on  the  northwesterly  side  was  removed,  and  at  a  later 
date  the  building  was  remodeled  and  thoroughly  repaired. 

Henry  Lunt,  who  came  to  Newbury  in  1635,  was  the 
owner  of  several  acres  of  land  in  this  vicinity  at  the  time 
of  his  death,  July  10,  1662.  His  son  Daniel  Lunt,  born 
May  17,  1 64 1,  married  Hannah  Coker  May  16,  1664. 
April  20,  1695,  Daniel  Lunt  sold  to  John  Weed  one  acre 
of  land  with  house  and  barn  thereon,  bounded  on  the  north- 
east b}^  the  highway  or  country  road,  on  the  southeast  and 
partly  on  the  southwest  by  land  in  the  possession  of  Henry 
Lunt  (son  of  Henry  Lunt,  Sr.),  and  on  the  northwest  and 
partly  on  the  southwest  by  land  of  Benjamin  Coker  (Essex 
Deeds,  book  12,  leaf  116). 

Nov.  6,  1732,  Henry  Lunt,  Jr.,  sold  to  John  Weed,  Jr., 
five  or  six  acres  adjoining  the  above-described  land  (book  61, 
leaf  169). 

John  Weed  died  in  1758.  In  the  division  of  his  estate 
the  one-acre  lot  with  part  of  the  house  was  assigned  to  his 
widow.  His  only  child,  Abraham  Weed,  evidently  came  into 
possession  of  the  rest  of  this  estate. 

Sarah  Weed,  the  widow  of  John,  died  in  1772.  Her  will, 
dated  Oct.  12,  1768,  and  proved  Oct.  28,  1772,  provides  for 
the  payment  of  certain  bequests,  and  gives  the  rest  and  resi- 
due of  her  estate  to  her  executor,  Ezra  Hale,  in  trust,  to  hold 
during  his  life,  and  then  to  the  Rev.  John  Tucker,  or  to  his 
successor  in  the  ministry  in  the  First  Parish  of  Newbury, 
for  the  use  of  a  school  for  the  poor  children  belonging  to  the 
society  of  said  parish. 


WATTS'    CELLAR    AND    FROG    POND  137 

Part  of  a  dwelling-house  with  two  and  three-quarters  acres 
of  land  adjoining  are  mentioned  in  the  in\'entory  of  this 
estate  ;  also  a  little  house  and  land  under  it  given  to  Joel 
Weed,  a  negro  slave.  The  last-named  house  was  on  the 
same  side  of  the  street,  a  few  rods  below  the  house  formerly 
owned  and  occupied  by  John  Weed,  and  was  some  years  later 
conveyed  to  the  town  of  Newbury  in  settlement  for  expenses 
incurred  in  the  support  of  the  said  Joel  Weed. 

May  22,  1789,  John  Hale,  administrator  of  the  estate  of 
Sarah  Weed,  sold  at  auction  to  Edmund  Knight  (at  the 
house  of  Oliver  Putnam,  innholder)  twenty-six  rods  of  land 
and  part  of  a  dwelling-house,  bounded  on  High  Street,  etc. 
(book  165,  leaf  So). 

Dec.  12,  1789,  P:dmund  Knight  sold  to  Nathan  Allen 
about  nineteen  rods  of  land  on  High  Street,  with  the  divid- 
ing line  on  a  range  with  the  westerly  end  of  the  said  Allen's 
house,  etc.  (book  i66,  leaf  93). 

Jan.  29,  1795,  P:dmund  Knight  sold  to  Richard  Pike  seven 
rods  of  land  and  part  of  a  dwelling-house,  described  as  fol- 
lows :  "beginning  on  High  Street  by  Green  Pearson's  land, 
thence  by  said  street  45^  feet  to  where  the  linter  part  of 
the  house  adjoins  Nathan  Allen's  house,"  etc.  (book  159, 
leaf  49). 

April  29,  1799,  Richard  Pike  sold  to  Philip  Coombs  seven 
rods  of  land  and  part  of  a  house,  bounded  and  described  as 
above,  "  being  the  same  premises  I  bought  of  Edmund  Knight 
Jan.  29,  1795  "  (book  164,  leaf  274). 

Nov.  24,  1800,  Levi  Mills,  administrator  of  the  estate  of 
Nathan  Allen,  conveyed  to  Abigail  Allen,  widow,  land 
bounded  and  described  as  follows  :  northeasterly  on  Norfolk 
(now  High)  Street,  southeasterly  by  land  of  Philip  Coombs, 
southwesterly  by  the  same,  and  northwesterly  by  land  of 
John  O'Brien  and  Philip  Coombs,  the  dividing  line  "running 
northeasterly  between  the  main  house  &  back  lintal  to  the 
middle  of  the  chimney,  thence  running  southeasterly  to  the 
front  of  the  house,  thence  running  northeasterly  at  the 
distance  of  one  foot  from  the  house  to  Norfolk  Street " 
(book  172,  leaf  i«79). 


138  OULD   XEWBURY 

May  31,  1803,  Abigail  Allen  sold  to  Philip  Coombs  land 
with  buildin<;s  thereon,  bounded  on  the  northeast  by  Norfolk 
Street,  on  the  southeast  and  southwest  by  land  of  Philip 
Coombs,  on  the  northwest  by  land  of  John  O'Brien  and 
Philip  Coombs  (book  172,  leaf  179). 

Jan.  22,  1 82 1,  Philip  Coombs,  of  Bangor,  Me.,  sold  to  Mi- 
cajah  Lunt  the  house  and  land  purchased  of  Richard  Pike 
April  29,  1799,  and  of  Abigail  Allen  May  31,  1803  (book 
224,  leaf  268). 

March  21,  1836,  Micajah  Lunt  sold  to  David  Perkins 
Page  the  above-described  property  (book  290,  leaf  7). 

David  P.  Page  died  Jan.  i,  1848.  His  widow,  Susan  M. 
(Lunt)  Page,  died  Leb.  5,  1878. 

Henry  T.  Page  and  Mary  L.  Coffin,  children  of  David  P. 
and  Susan  M.  Page,  gave  a  deed  June  10,  1878,  of  one-half 
house  and  land  to  Susan  M.  Currier  (book  looo,  leaf  216). 

P2mily  C.  W.  Page,  guardian  of  David  Perkins  and  Rufus 
Wills  Page,  grandchildren  of  David  P.  Page,  June  28,  1878, 
conveyed  one-quarter  part  of  house  and  land  to  Susan  M. 
Currier  (book  lOOO,  leaf  216). 


TITLES  TO   LAND   BETWEEN   ORDWAY'S 
LANE   AND   CHANDLER'S   LANE. 


The  lot  owned  by  John  Bartlett  at  the  corner  of  Ordway's 
Lane  and  the  country  road  contained  eight  acres.  One-half 
of  the  lot,  next  the  country  road,  down  as  far  as  the  first  two 
stars,  was  granted  to  Thomas  Browne  in  1645  or  1646,  and 
was  owned  by  him  in  1647.  There  is  no  conveyance  in 
the  registry  of  deeds  from  him.  The  next  recorded  deed  is 
from  William  Titcomb  to  Christopher  Bartlett,  dated  March 
I,  165 1,  describing  the  lot  as  follows  :  — 

Four  acres  of  land  in  Newbury  in  the  field  called  the  lower  nine 
lotts,  bounded  by  the  highway  neare  the  frogg  pond  on  the  south  & 
Cross  Street  on  the  west,  John  Bond's  land  on  the  east,  &  John  Bart- 
lett's  on  the  north  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  i,  page  iii  (325). 

There  is  no  deed  on  record  from  Christopher  Bartlett. 

The  other  half  of  the  lot,  consisting  of  four  acres  of  land, 
was  probably  granted  to  John  Pike,  Jr.  At  all  events  he 
conveyed  to  John  Bartlett,  of  Newbury,  Nov.  29,  1647, 
"  four  acres  in  ye  verge  of  lotts  on  the  north  side  of  the 
frogge  pond  in  Newbury,  in  the  New  towaie,  being  bounded 
on  ye  north  with  the  land  of  Anthony  Morse,  on  the  south 
with  the  land  of  Thomas  Browne,  on  the  east  end  the  land  of 
John  Bonde,  and  on  the  west  with  the  Streete."  Acknowl- 
edged 1 8th  day,  third  month,  1650  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  i, 
page  54   (177). 

John  Bartlett,  Sr.,  conveyed  to  his  son  John  Bartlett,  Jr., 
May  29,  1660,  six  acres  of  this  land,  bounded  on  the  north- 
west by  Cross  Street,  on  the  southwest  by  High  Street,  on 
the  southeast  by  Stephen  Greenleaf,  and  on  the  northeast 
by  the  grantor  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  3,  page  177  (132). 


14°  OULD   NEWBURY 

The  other  two  acres  were  retained  b)'  John  liartlett,  Sr., 
until  his  death,  Feb.  9,  1678-9.  In  his  will  he  devised  to  his 
son  John  l^artlett,  to  whom  he  had  deeded  the  si.\  acres  May 
29,  1660,  the  remaintler  of  the  lot  between  the  last  two  stars 
and  the  land  of  Hannah  Morse  ;  and  so  the  entire  lot  came 
into  the  possession  of  John  Bartlett,  Jr. 

In  the  year  1679,  when  the  supj^osed  case  of  witchcraft  in 
Newbur)',  was  brou<;ht  to  the  attention  of  the  court  at  Salem, 
and  in  1680,  when  Elizabeth,  wife  of  William  Morse,  Sr.,  was 
condemned  to  death,  b}'  the  court  of  assistants  held  at  Bos- 
ton, for  her  sinful  beha\ior,  "instigated  by  the  Divil,"  this 
corner  lot  of  eight  acres  of  land  was  the  property  of  John 
Bartlett,  Jr.  He  retained  possession  of  it  for  more  than 
twenty  years  after  the  trial  of  Elizabeth  Morse,  and  so  far  as 
the  records  show  there  were  no  buildings  upon  it. 

The  tradition  that  William  Morse  once  owned  and  occupied 
a  house  on  this  lot  of  land  is,  therefore,  erroneous.  He  died 
Nov.  29,  1683.  His  residence  at  that  date  was  on  the  south- 
easter!)' side  of  what  is  now  known  as  Market  Square  ;  and 
the  memorable  scenes  described  by  many  witnesses  in  the 
testimony  quoted  by  Coffin  in  his  History  of  Newbury 
(pages  122  to  134  inclusive)  undoubtedly  occurred  in  the 
old  house  then  standing  there. 

There  is  no  evidence  that  any  person  by  the  name  of  Morse 
owned  land  on  the  corner  of  Ord way's  Lane  and  High  Street 
until  April  3,  1701,  when  John  l^artlett  sold  to  Joseph  Morse 
one  acre  and  eight  rods,  bounded  on  the  northwest  by  Ord- 
way's  Lane  twenty-four  rods,  on  the  southwest  by  the  coun- 
try road  seven  rods,  and  on  the  southeast  and  northeast  by 
the  grantor's  land  (book  21,  leaf  178). 

In  this  conveyance  there  is  no  mention  of  house  ox  other 
buildings.  Joseph  Morse  died  in  1744.  11  is  will,  dated  May 
19,  1741.  ])r()\-ed  Sept.  27,  1744,  gi\es  to  his  "  son  Joseph 
and  two  children  of  son  Daniel  "'  about  one  acre  of  land  and 
to  son  lulmuntl  the  I'cmainder  of  his  real  estate,  which  in- 
cludes house  and  land  on  the  corner  of  ()rdwa}'s  Lane. 

lulmund  Morse,  b)'  will  dated  June  16,  1788,  proved  June 
28,  1790,  de\'ised  the  southwestern  half  of  the  house  and  land 


LAND     TITLES  141 

to  his  daughters,  Eunice  Rogers  and  Keturah  Gerrish,  bounded 
northeasterly  by  the  other  half  of  the  house  and  lot  (devised 
to  his  son  Edmund  Morse),  northwesterly  by  Market  Street, 
and  southwesterly  by  High  Street. 

Dec.  15,  1 81 5,  George  W.  Rogers  gave  to  Keturah  Ger- 
rish a  quitclaim  deed  of  "  house  and  land  given  to  my  mother, 
Eunice  Rogers,  by  my  grandfather,  Edmund  Morse,  in  his 
last  will,  bounded  northwesterly  by  Market  Street  and  south- 
westerly by  High  Street  "    (book  208,  leaf  257). 

The  northeastern  half  of  the  house  and  land  devised  by 
Edmund  Morse  to  his  son  Edmund  was  by  the  latter  devised 
to  his  son  William  Morse. 

In  the  year  181  5  William  Morse  gave  to  Keturah  Gerrish 
a  quitclaim  deed  of  the  northeastern  half  of  the  house  and 
lot  (book  206,  leaf  200). 

Keturah  Gerrish  died  in  the  year  1822,  and  by  her  will 
devised  the  house  and  land  to  the  heirs  of  Lois  Greenleaf. 

Subsequent  conveyances  recorded  in  the  Essex  Registry  of 
Deeds  are  as  follows  :  — 

Feb.  17,  185 1,  Richard  O.  Greenleaf  to  Philip  K.  Hills 
(book  440,  leaf  294). 

Dec.  13,  185 1,  Philip  K.  Hills  and  others  to  William  J. 
Creasey  and  others  (book  455,  leaf  221). 

Jan.  24,  1852,  William  J.  Creasey  and  others  to  Charles  W. 
Lander  (book  455,  leaf  243). 

Nov.  16,  1852,  Charles  W.  Lander  to  widow  Lydia  S. 
Lander  (book  468,  leaf  139). 

April  16,  1884,  children  and  heirs  of  Lydia  S.  Lander 
to  Mary  C.  Haynes  (book  1130,  leaf  176,  and  book  11 66, 
leaf   136). 

Hannah  Morse's  four-acre  lot  on  Ordway's  Lane  was 
granted  to  Anthony  Morse,  her  grandfather,  in  1646.  Mr. 
Morse  died  Oct.  12,  1686,  and  in  his  will  devised  all  his  real 
estate  to  his  son  Joshua  Morse.  Joshua  Morse  died  March 
20,  1 690-1  ;  and,  in  the  division  of  the  estate  Feb.  27,  1699- 
1700,  this  tract  was  assigned  to  his  daughter  Hannah  Morse, 
who  subsequently  married  John  Emery,  Jr.  No  house  is 
mentioned  upon  this  lot  before  1700. 


142  OULD   NEWBURY 

The  lot  of  lulward  Richardson  of  two  acres  and  three- 
quarters,  with  the  l^adi;er  lot  adjoining",  was  probably  granted 
to  Edward  Richardson.  It  was  owned  by  Edward  Richard- 
son in  1665  and  by  Sargeant  lulward  Richardson  in  1692, 
the  latter  continuing  to  hold  the  legal  title  to  the  homestead, 
though  it  was  occupied  by  Joshua  Richardson  in  1695,  and 
by  Caleb  Richardson  later.  A  house  had  existed  on  this  lot 
for  several  years  before  1 700,  probably. 

The  lot  of  John  Badger,  at  Badger's  corner,  at  the  junction 
of  Ordway's  Lane  and  the  highway  along  the  ri\er,  contained 
an  acre  and  a  quarter.  The  first  owner  of  this  lot  was  John 
Browne,  so  far  as  any  records  have  yet  revealed.  He  sold 
the  place  to  Henry  Greenland,  the  physician  who  came  to 
Newbury,  according  to  Coffin,  in  1662.  Dr.  Greenland  re- 
tained possession  of  the  property  but  a  short  time;  and  Jan. 
12,  1665  (probably  1665-6,  when  he  was  banished  from  the 
town),  he  sold  it  to  Israel  Webster,  who  was  related  to  John 
Browne  by  marriage.  Wlien  Dr.  Greenland  sold  this  prop- 
erty a  house  was  mentioned  in  the  deed  (Ipswich  Deeds, 
book  4,  leaf  7).  Mr.  Webster  owned  the  place  until  his 
death,  which  occurred  Dec.  7,  1683.  The  next  owner  re- 
corded was  Thomas  Huse,  of  Newbury,  a  mason.  Air.  Web- 
ster's son-in-law.  He  owned  it  in  1692  ;  and  May  6,  1695, 
for  ^46,  he  sold  it  to  John  Badger,  of  Newbury  (book  42, 
leaf  64),  who  dwelt  in  the  house  for  many  years,  from  which 
fact  this  corner  became  known  as  "Badger's  corner." 

The  triangular  lot  of  Benaiah  Titcomb  on  the  highwa}- 
along  the  ri\er  contained  an  acre  and  a  quarter,  and  was 
owned  in  1665  by  Anthony  Morse.  Oct.  9,  1678,  he  sold  it 
to  Benaiah  Titcomb,  who  continued  to  own  it  until  after  1700 
(book  14,  leaf  107,  and  Ipswich  Deeds,  book  4.  leaf  327). 
No  house  or  otiiei"  huilcHug  is  mentioned  in  this  (\k^k:^\. 

The  field  at  the  corner  of  the  countr\'  I'oad  and  Greenleaf's 
Lane  was  owned  b\'  Stephen  and  lulniund  (ireenleaf  in  the 
year  1700.      ()ne-tliiicl  pari  of  this  field   next   to  the  ct)untr\- 


LAND     TITLES  143 

road,  down  as  far  as  the  first  two  stars,  was  granted,  prob- 
ably, to  Daniel  Peirce.  He  acknowledged  before  Anthony 
Somerby,  clerk  of  the  town  of  Newbury,  "  that  in  ye  yeare 
1645  he  sould  to  John  Bond  four  akers  of  land  more  or  less 
as  it  lyeth  in  that  parcell  of  lotts  by  the  frog  pond  &  Watts 
Sellar  &  to  be  fully  satisfied,  it  is  bounded  with  the  street  on 
the  South  &  east,  by  the  land  of  Thomas  Brown  on  the  west, 
and  the  land  John  Bishop  sould  to  the  said  John  Bond  on  the 
north."      Upon  this  land  John  Bond  built  a  house  and  barn. 

The  other  third  part  of  this  field,  between  the  four  stars, 
was  granted  to  John  Bishop.  He  acknowledged  Feb.  27, 
1649,  "to  have  sould  to  John  Bond  four  akers  of  land  in  the 
field  that  is  between  the  **  frog  pond  &  Wats  sellar  &  to 
have  received  full  satisfaction,  &  it  is  bounded  on  the  north 
with  four  akers  of  land  that  John  Bond  bought  of  John 
Emery,  on  the  south  with  that  land  that  John  Bond  bought 
of  Daniel  Peirce,  on  the  west  the  land  of  John  Bartlett,  & 
the  street  on  the  east." 

The  remaining  third  part  of  this  field  was  probably 
granted  to  John  P2mery,  Sr.  He  acknowledged  "  P"eb.  20, 
1649,  that  in  the  year  1645  he  sould  unto  John  Bond  also 
of  **  four  akers  of  land  lying  in  that  parcell  of  lotts  ***  the 
frog  pond  and  Watts  Sellar,  being  fully  satisfied,  **  between 
the  land  **  Cromlome  the  north,  John  Bishops  lot  on  the 
south,  ***  on  the  east,  &  the  land  of  Anthony  Morse  on  the 
west." 

John  Bond  was  a  husbandman  of  Newbury.  Nov.  20, 
1660,  he  conveyed  the  entire  field  of  twelve  acres  with  the 
house  and  barn  to  Stephen  Greenleaf,  of  Newbury,  bounded 
with  "  a  lane  going  down  to  Watts  Sellar  on  the  east,  and  the 
High  Street  on  ye  South,  John  Bartletts  land  on  the  west,  & 
the  land  of  Gyles  Cromlon  on  the  north"  (Ipswich  Deeds, 
book  2,  leaf  85   (176). 

Captain  Greenleaf  conveyed  the  upper  end  of  this  twelve- 
acre  lot,  with  the  buildings  thereon,  to  his  son  Stephen 
Greenleaf,  soon  after  the  marriage,  probably,  of  the  latter  to 
Elizabeth  Gerrish  in  1676.  The  deed,  if  one  passed  between 
them,  has  not  been  discovered. 


144  OULD   XElVBrRY 

Stei)hen  (irccnlcaf,  Sr.,  clicd  in  1690.  In  his  will  he  de- 
xised  to  his  son  Stephen  one-half  the  homestead  lot  next  to 
the  said  Stej^hen,  and  the  remainder  of  the  lot  to  his  son 
Edmund.  The  land  remained  in  the  possession  of  the  two 
brothers  undi\ided  until  after  the  \ear  i  700. 

John  (jreenleaf  s  lot  of  five  acres  was  part  of  the  original 
eight  acres  of  Gyles  Cromwell,  who  owned  it  as  early  as 
1660,  and  to  whom  it  may  have  been  granted  in  the  laying 
out  of  the  new  town.  Mr.  Cromwell  died  in  Newbury  Feb. 
25,  1672-3  ;  and  in  his  will  he  devised  the  whole  estate  to 
his  daughter  Argentine,  wife  of  Benjamin  Cram.  Dec.  22, 
1692,  John  Cram,  of  Hampton,  probably  son  and  heir  of  Ar- 
gentine, conveyed  five  acres  of  the  lot  to  John  Greenleaf,  of 
Newbury,  the  rest  of  the  original  lot  having  been  already 
disposed  of  (book  10,  leaf  4).  Mr.  Greenleaf  continued  to 
own  these  fi\'e  acres,  which  he  thus  obtained,  until  after  1700. 

The  lot  of  Richard  Dole,  containing  about  two  acres  and 
a  half,  was  a  part  of  the  eight  acres  owned  by  G}les  Crom- 
well in  1660.  He  died  Feb.  25,  1672-3,  and  in  his  will 
devised  the  entire  lot  to  his  daughter  Argentine,  wife  of 
Benjamin  Cram,  of  Hampton,  N.  H.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Cram 
sold  this  lot  to  Richard  Dole,  of  Newbury,  merchant,  March 
8,  1674-5  (book  22,  leaf  86).  He  died  possessed  of  the  lot 
after   1 700. 

The  lot  of  Benjamin  Dole  and  John  Dole,  containing  about 
an  acre,  was  a  part  of  the  eight  acres  owned  b)'  Gyles  Crom- 
well in  1660.  He  died  I'eb.  25,  1672-3,  and  in  his  will 
devised  the  entire  lot  to  his  daughter  Argentine,  wife  of 
Benjamin  Cram,  of  Hampton,  N.  H.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Cram 
conveyed  this  lot,  with  the  house  thereon,  to  Richard  Dole, 
of  Newbury,  a  merchant,  March  8,  1674-5  (book  22.  leaf 
86).  Mr.  Dole  conveyed  this  house  ami  lot  to  his  st)n  Dr. 
John  Dole  (who  was  at  that  time  in  occupation  of  the  place 
and  had  been  li\ing  in  the  house  ])robabl\-  since  his  father 
bought    it    in   1675)  Aug.   16.  16S1  (book    10,  leaf    171  ).      Dr. 


LAND     TITLES  I45 

Dole  died  in  1694,  intestate.  In  the  division  of  the  real 
estate  his  widow,  Mary  Dole,  was  given  the  northeast  end 
of  the  house  and  other  property  for  her  life  as  her  dower, 
and  the  fee  of  the  real  estate  was  assigned  two  parts  to  the 
deceased's  eldest  son,  Benjamin  Dole,  and  one  part  to  the 
younger  son,  John  Dole.  These  persons  were  owning  the 
lot   in    1700. 

The  lot  of  Benaiah  Titcomb,  containing  half  an  acre,  was 
a  part  of  the  eight  acres  owned  by  Gyles  Cromwell  in  1660. 
He  died  Feb.  25,  1672-3,  and  in  his  will  devised  the  entire 
lot  to  his  daughter  Argentine,  wife  of  Benjamin  Cram,  of 
Hampton,  N.  H.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Cram  conveyed  this  lot  to 
Richard  Dole,  of  Newbury,  a  merchant,  March  8,  1674-5 
(book  22,  leaf  86)  ;  and  Mr.  Dole  conveyed  it  to  Benaiah 
Titcomb  July  15,  1695  (book  14,  leaf  108).  He  continued 
to  own  it  in  1 700. 

The  lot  of  Hathorn  Coker,  of  three  acres  and  eighty-three 
square  rods,  at  the  corner  of  the  country  road  and  Green- 
leaf's  Lane  was  granted,  together  with  the  western  end  of 
Benjamin  Coker's  lot  as  far  as  the  stars,  to  Francis  Plummer 
in  1645.  He  sold  the  lot,  which  contained  four  acres,  to 
Robert  Coker,  both  of  Newbury,  and  both  yeomen,  Jan.  7, 
165  1-2  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  i,  leaf  109  (322).  Mr.  Coker 
already  owned  the  lot  adjoining  on  the  country  road,  and 
lived  there.  Mr.  Coker  died  May  19,  1680;  and  in  his  will 
he  devised  this  lot  to  his  son  Joseph  Coker.  Joseph  died  in 
1697,  and  in  his  will  devised  his  real  estate  to  his  sons 
Benjamin  and  Hathorn,  who  made  a  di\-ision,  Hathorn  taking 
this  lot. 

The  lot  on  Greenleaf's  Lane,  containing  four  acres,  owned 
by  John  Bartlett,  was  originally  granted  to  Samuel  Plummer. 
In  the  town  records,  under  date  of  :March  i.  1648,  the  follow- 
ing transfers  of  land  are  recorded  :  — 

Said Plummer  sold  to  Edmund   Moors  four  acres  in  that  virge 

of  lotts  that  Butteth  on  the  lane  going  down  to  Watts  his  Sellar  on  the 


146  OULD   NK]VBURY 

right  hand  o{  the  street.  .  .  .  Edmund  Moors,  of  tliis  Towne.  March  i. 
1648.  acknowledged  to  have  sold  unto  John  Bartlett.  also  of  this  Towne. 
the  four  acres  of  planting  land  that  lately  was  Samuel  Plumers  that 
lyeth  in  that  verge  of  lotts  on  the  right  hand  going  down  to  Watts 
Sellar,  bounded  w">  the  street  on  the  west,  the  land  of  Henry  Somerby 
on  the  north  and  east.  l\:  the  land  of  Francis  Plumer  on  the  South. 

May  29,  1660,  John  Bartlett  con\-eyed  to  his  son  John 
Bartlett,  Jr.,  the  lower  half  of  this  lot  with  a  house  upon  it, 
extendini;"  from  a  line  drawn  between  the  two  stars  marked 
on  the  map  to  the  land  of  Edward  Richardson.  He  retained 
the  upper  half  of  the  lot,  which  also  had  a  house  upon  it,  and 
where  he  undoubtedly  lixed   (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  3,  leaf  177 

(13^)- 

John  Bartlett,  Sr.,  died  Feb.  5,  1678-9.  In  his  will  he 
devised  the  upper  half  of  this  lot  to  his  son  John  ;  and,  if  the 
said  John  should  die  without  issue,  then  to  his  kinsman, 
Christopher  Bartlett. 

June  6,  1 68 1,  Christopher  Bartlett  conveyed  his  interest 
in  the  lot  to  John  Bartlett,  Jr.  (book  1 1,  leaf  177). 

By  this  conveyance  John  Bartlett,  Jr.,  came  into  the  pos- 
session of  the  entire  lot  of  four  acres.  He  retained  posses- 
sion of  it  until  his  death  in  1 707. 

The  western  part  of  the  lot  of  Edward  Richardson,  e.xtend- 
ing  eastward  as  far  as  the  stars,  contained  four  acres,  and,  an 
old  deed  asserts,  was  owned  by  Henry  Somerby  in  1648. 
Mr.  Richardson  t)wned  it  as  early  as  1660,  and  also  the 
easterly  half,  which  contained  the  same  number  of  acres. 
The  title  continued  in  Edward  Richardson,  father,  son,  and 
grandson,  until  1700.  In  1719.  the  house  upon  it  was  called 
"  the  old  house." 

The  lot  of  r'awn  Clements,  containing  eight  acres,  was 
earl)-  owned  by  Richard  i^'itts,  of  Newbury,  who  called  him- 
self a  planter.  He  died  Dec.  2,  1672,  and  in  his  will  dc\ised 
all  liis  real  estate  in  \ewl)ui"N'  to  his  nephew  .Abraham  l*"itts, 
of  Ipswich.  Abraham  con\eyed  the  lot  to  his  son  Abraham, 
who   was  also  of    Ipswich,    April    12,    1680    (Ipswich    Deeds, 


LAND     TITLES  ^47 

book  5,  leaf  208).  May  19,  1684,  Abraham,  Jr.,  conveyed 
it  to  Edward  Ordway,  both  of  whom  were  then  of  Ipswich 
(Ipswich  Deeds,  book  5,  leaf  209).  Mr.  Ordway  built  a 
house  upon  the  land,  and  removed  to  Newbury,  making  this 
his  home.  May  24,  1699,  he  sold  the  property  to  Fawn 
Clements,  of  Newbury,  who  owned  it  many  years  (book  13, 
leaf  185). 

The  lot  of  Captain  Peter  Coffin,  containing  four  acres  and 
ten  rods,  was  the  four-acre  lot  granted  to  William  Morse  in 
1645,  and  a  little  strip  one  rod  wide  and  ten  rods  long  in  the 
northern  corner  subsequently  purchased.      Apparently,  before 
1677,  Mr.  Morse  had  given  his  son  Jonathan  a  little  strip  out 
of  this  lot  near  the  northern  corner,  twenty-six  feet  wide  on 
the  street  and  running  back  one  hundred  and  eighteen  feet, 
probably  to  build  a  house  on  ;  but,  instead  of  doing  that,  he 
sold  the  land  to  John  Wells,  who  conveyed  it,  Nov.  30,  1677, 
to  John  Tucker,  a  mariner,  of   Newbury  (book   31,  leaf    12). 
Mr.  Wells  had  just  removed  from  Newbury  to  Boston,  and  was 
a  carpenter  by  trade.      Another  strip  of  the  same  size  as  this, 
and    on  the  eastern  side  of    it,   had   got   into   the    hands  of 
Thomas   Follingsby,  of  Newbury,  and  his  wife  Mary.      They 
had  the  frame  of  a  house  set  up  on  the  lot  when  they  sold  it 
with  the  frame  to  Mr.  Tucker  for  ^14,  Dec.  7,  1677  (book 
31,  leaf   12).      William   Morse  died  Nov.  29,  1683,  after  suf- 
fering from  the  affliction  of  early  witchcraft  ;  and  in  his  will 
he  devised  the  place,  house,  barn,  and  land,  to  his   daughter 
Abigail,  wife  of  John  Hendricks.     Mr.  Hendricks  died  soon 
after,  and  she  married  Moses  Pengry.      Major  Daniel  Davison 
had  probably  bought  the  place  upon  the  death  of  Mr.  Morse  ; 
but  no  deed  passed  until  June  19,  1696,  when  Moses  Pengry, 
of    Newbury,  a  shipwright,  and    his  wife    Abigail    (formerly 
Abigail    Hendricks),  as  executrix  of    the  will  of   her  father 
William   Morse,  gave  to  Major  Davison  a  deed  of  the  house 
and  lot  which  the  deceased  had  owned  and  devised  to  her 
(book  36,  leaf  63).     July  6,  following,  they  gave  another  deed, 
in  their  personal  capacity   (book   36,  leaf   52).      In  the  mean- 
time Major  Davison  had  purchased  of  Caleb  Moody,  March 


148  OL'LD   NEWBrRY 

26,  1686  (?),  the  little  strip  at  the  northern  corner,  ten  rods 
long  and  one  rod  wide  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  5.  leaf  179). 
This  strip  was  a  part  of  the  lot  owned  by  David  Wheeler 
in  1659,  which  he  con\e)ed  to  Caleb  Moody,  16:  11  :  1667 
(Ipswich  Deeds,  book  3.  leaf  50  i^S).  Aug.  27,  1698,  Major 
Daxison  bought  of  Captain  John  Tucker  his  mansion  house 
and  lot,  thus  bringing  that  little  plat  back  into  the  large  lot 
again  (book  25,  leaf  92).  The  old  house  of  William  Morse 
was  probabl)'  allowed  to  go  to  pieces,  and  the  house  of  Cap- 
tain Tucker's  construction  became  the  abode  of  Major 
Davison.  Major  Daxison  was  a  merchant  ;  and  Aug.  22, 
1699,  he  conveyed  to  his  wife's  father-in-law.  Captain  Peter 
Cofifin,  of  Exeter,  N.  H.,  the  entire  estate  (book  14,  leaf  301). 
Captain  Coffin  continued  to  own  the  premises  till  1714,  when 
he  conveyed  them  to  Major  Davison  and  his  wife  Abigail, 
who  had  probably  resided  there  in  the  meantime. 

The  lot  of  William  Noyes,  containing  thirty-three  square 
rods,  was  a  part  of  the  lot  owned  by  David  Wheeler  in 
1659,  which  was  conveyed  by  him  and  his  wife  Sarah,  who 
were  of  Newbury,  to  Caleb  Moody,  also  of  Newbury,  16  :  11: 
1667  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  3,  leaf  50  (38).  Mr.  Moody 
sold  this  part  of  his  lot  to  Mr.  Noyes,  who  was  a  cooper,  and 
of  Newbury,  Jan.  23,  1683-4  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  5,  leaf 
28).      Mr.  Noyes  owned  it  for  several  years  after   1700. 

The  lot  of  John  March,  containing  tweh'e  square  rods,  was 
a  part  of  the  lot  owned  by  David  Wheeler  in  1659,  which 
was  con\-eyed  b)'  him  and  his  wife  Sarah,  who  were  of  New- 
bury, to  Caleb  Moody,  also  of  Newbury,  16:  11  :  1657  (Ips- 
wich Deeds,  book  3,  leaf  50  {>,S).  Mr.  Mood)-  sold  this 
part  of  his  lot  to  Mr.  March,  who  was  then  of  Xewbui\', 
and  an  "ordinary  keeper,"  in  November,  1684  (book  12, 
leaf  138).      Mr.  March  owned  the  premises  until  after  1700. 

The  lot  of  Captain  lulwai"d  Sargent,  containing  half  an 
acre,  was  a  part  of  the  lot  owned  b\'  l)a\id  Wheeler  in  1659, 
which  was  con\e\'ed  b\'  him.  who   was  of   Xewbui\'.  to   Caleb 


LAND     TITLES  I49 

Moody,  also  of  Newbury,  i6  :  1 1  :  1657  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book 
3,  leaf  50  (38).  Mr.  Moody  died  in  Newbury  Aug.  25, 
1698,  intestate;  and  the  estate  came  into  the  hands  of  his 
son,  Thomas  Moody,  who  conveyed  this  part  of  the  lot  to 
Captain  Sargent,  who  was  of  Newbury,  and  a  vintner,  April 
20,  1699  (book  13,  leaf  144). 

The  lot  of  Thomas  Moody,  containing  about   eight  acres, 
consisted    originally   of    two  lots,   the   dividing   line    running 
between  them  from   star  to  star.     The  eastern  portion,  next 
to  Chandler's  Lane,  was  owned  by  Aquilla  Chase  in  the  early 
settlement   of  this  portion  of  Newbury,  and  he  conveyed  it, 
shortly  before    1659,   to   Robert    Rogers,    of    Newbury;. and 
Mr.    Rogers,  for  £a,o,   conveyed  it,   together  with  the  house 
thereon,  to  William   Moody   April  4,    1659   (Ipswich   Deeds, 
book  2,  leaf  206).     Mr.  Moody's  son  Caleb  occupied  the  prop- 
erty, and  he  probably  erected  the   malt-house  standing  there. 
He  was  a  maltster  ;  and  June  3,  1673,  his  father  conveyed  to 
him  the  premises,   with  the  dwelling-house,   malt-house,  etc., 
thereon  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  3,  leaf  312    (239).     The  west- 
ern portion  of  the  lot  was  a  part  of  the  lot  owned  by  David 
Wheeler    in    1659,    which  was  conveyed    by  him,    who    was 
of  Newbury,  to  Caleb  Moody  (who  owned  the  other  part  of 
the  lot),  together  with  the  house  thereon,  16:11  :  1667  (Ips- 
wich Deeds,  book  3,  leaf  50  (38).     Caleb  Moody  died  Aug. 
25,  1698,  intestate;  and,  in  the  settlement  of  his  real  estate, 
this  lot  was  agreed  to  be  his  son  Thomas'.      He  owned  the 
premises  for  many  years,  carrying  on  his  business  of  a  malt- 
ster, as  did  his  father  before  him. 

The  lot  of  Henry  Hale,  containing  eight  acres,  was  early 
in  the  possession  of  Henry  Fay.  He  died,  unmarried,  June 
30,  1655,  and  left  a  request  that  his  brother's  children  should 
have  his  real  estate.  Thomas  Noyes,  of  Sudbury,  was  evi- 
dently the  heir,  as  he  gave  a  power  of  attorney  to  lease  the 
house  and  land.  His  attorney  conveyed  the  premises  to 
John  Allen,  of  Newbury.  Mr.  Allen,  for  ^80,  sold  the  land, 
with  the  house  and  barn  thereon,  to  John  Hale,  of  Newbury, 


15°  OULD   XEIVBUKY 

Oct.  15,  1661  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  2,  leaf  117).  Mr.  Hale 
conveyed  one  undivided  half  of  the  land  and  house  to  his  son 
Henry  in  1695  (book  12,  leaf  107),  and  the  other  half  in 
1699-1700  (book  15,  leaf  145).  Henry  Hale  owned  it  sev- 
eral years. 

The  lot  of  William  Chandler,  containing  ft)ur  acres,  was 
granted  to  Gyles  Badger  in  or  about  1646.  He  died  July  10, 
1647  ;  and  the  premises  were  purchased  by  Henry  Somerby 
immediately.  In  1652,  Mr.  Somerby  agreed  to  sell  the  lot  to 
Mr.  Chandler,  who  was  of  Newbury  ;  but  the  owner  died 
Oct.  2,  1652,  before  the  conveyance  was  executed.  His 
widow  married  Tristram  Coffin,  of  Newbury;  and  April  5, 
1654,  she  completed  the  transfer  as  "executrix,"  and  also 
personally  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  3,  leaf  24  (17).  Mr.  Chand- 
ler owned  the  lot   and  house  thereon  until  his  death  in  1701. 

The  lot  of  Benjamin  Coker,  at  the  corner  of  Chandler's 
Lane  and  the  country  road,  containing  four  and  a  half 
acres,  was  the  whole  of  the  four-acre  lot  owned  by  Robert 
Coker  in  165  i  ;  and  the  remainder  of  the  lot,  being  half  an 
acre  westerly  of  the  two  stars,  was  a  part  of  the  four-acre  lot 
granted  to  Francis  Plummer  in  1645.  Mr.  Plummer  sold  his 
whole  lot  to  Robert  Coker,  who  was  of  Newbury,  and  a 
farmer,  Jan.  7,  165 1-2  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  i,  leaf  109 
(322).  Mr.  Robert  Coker  died  May  19,  1680;  and  in  his 
will  he  devised  this  whole  lot,  together  with  the  adjoining  lot 
CM!  the  corner  of  Greenleaf's  Lane  and  the  countr}'  road,  to 
his  son  Joseph  Coker.  Joseph  conveyed  to  his  son  Benjamin 
one  acre  of  the  lot,  it  being  the  eastern  corner,  the  three 
stars  showing  the  di\'ision  line,  Dec.  26,  1692  (book  26,  leaf 
91).  Mr.  Joseph  Coker  died  in  1697,  and  in  his  will  dexised 
his  real  estate  to  his  sons  J-5enjamin  and  Ilathorn,  who  made 
a  division  of  the  premises,  Benjamin  taking  this  lot,  including 
the  acre  alread)'  owned  b\-  him. 


WHARVES   AND   DOCKS. 


April  25,  1655,  the  town  of  Newbury  "granted  to  Captain 
Paul  White  a  parcell  of  land  not  exceeding  half  an  acre,  about 
Watts  his  cellar,  for  to  make  a  dock,  a  wharf,  and  a  ware- 
house, provided  he  do  build  a  dock  and  warehouse  as  afore- 
said ;  but  the  town  granteth  no  liberty  of  freehold  or  com- 
monage hereby,  and  if  he  shall  hereafter  sell  it,  when  he 
hath  built  upon  it,  the  town  shall  have  the  forsaking  of  it." 
On  the  seventh  day  of  May,  1656,  this  half-acre  of  land  at 
the  foot  of  Greenleaf's  Lane  "from  the  river  by  the  great 
rocks  upon  a  strait  lyne  to  a  stake  by  the  way,"  and  thence 
westerly  by  another  great  rock,  etc.,  was  laid  out  to  Cap- 
tain Paul  W^hite,  who  complied  with  the  conditions  of  the 
grant,  and  built  there  the  first  wharf  within  the  limits  of  the 
town.  He  retained  possession  of  this  property  until  Feb.  26, 
1677,  when  he  conveyed  it  to  Thomas  Woodbridge  for  life, 
and  then  to  Paul  and  Thomas,  sons,  and  to  Mary,  wife  of  the 
said  Thomas  Woodbridge  (Essex  Registry  of  Deeds,  book 
10,  page  95). 

Thomas  W^oodbridge,  Sr.,  died  very  suddenly  March  30, 
1681  ;  and  some  years  later  the  wharf  came  into  the  posses- 
sion of  his  son  Benjamin  Woodbridge.  The  following  depo- 
sitions, taken  from  the  Essex  Registry  of  Deeds,  contain 
some  interesting  historical  facts  in  relation  to  the  original 
grant  of  this  land  by  the  town  of  Newbury  :  — 

Percivall  Lowell,  aged  about  seventy-two  years,  testitieth  &  Saith  y' 
about  fifty  years  Since,  not  long  after  y^'  grant  of  about  halfe  of  an 
acre  of  Land,  laid  out  at  y'^'  point  of  Rocks  near  Watts  his  Cellar  in 
Newbury  to  Cap'  Paul  White,  now  known  by  y'^'  name  of  Cap*  Whites 
warehouse  point,  y''  said  Cap*  Paul  White  desired  me  y  deponant  to  goe 
w"^  him  &  with  John  Bishop,  one  of  y''  Committee  y'  laid  out  y^'  Land 


152  OCLD    NEWBURY 

above  mentioned,  to  see  y  Bounds  thereof.  iS:  y"'  Said  Jn"  Bishop  and 
Cap'  White  Shewed  me  y"  Bounds  of  Said  Land.  <S;  v  Bounds  were  & 
are  near  y''  places  wliere  I.  y*-"  Said  Lowell,  and  Nathan"  Brickett  set  up 
y'^  Stakes  this  twenty  second  day  of  March,  1710-1 1.  by  y''  Great  Rock 
&  Gutter  &  River.  &  so  to  take  in  y  whole  point  of  Rocks.  &  y''  Cove 
therein  contained  was  y  place  where  y'  said  Cap'  White  had  his  Dock. 

Percivall  Lowell. 

Essex,  ss.  M^  Percivall  Lowell  Personally  appeared  before  us  two  of 
her  niaj''"-  Justices  of  y"'  peace  for  y  County  of  Essex,  qiioriun  idius. 
upon  y*^  Spott  of  Land  above  mentioned  &  made  oath  to  by  y'^'  evidence 
above  written  this  twenty  second  dav  of  March,  r  710-1  i. 

Thomas  Noves, 
Joseph  Woodbridge.* 

Nathaniel  Brickett.  aged  sixty  two  years,  testitieth  &  .Saith  y*  about 
Thirty  seven  or  thirty  eight  years  since  y^'  town  of  Newbury  at  a  town 
meeting  desired  me,  y*^^  said  Nathaniel  Brickett,  to  goe  with  Deacon  Rich'^ 
Knight,  then  one  of  the  lot  layers  for  y''  town  of  newbury.  to  see  y^' 
Bounds  of  about  half  an  acre  of  Land,  formerly  Laid  out  to  Cap'  Paul 
White,  near  Watts  his  cellar  in  Newbury,  now  known  bv  V  name  of 
Cap'  Whites  warehouse  point,  and  y''  Bound  y'  were  then  Shewed  me 
by  said  Richard  Knight  were  at  or  near  y^'  places  where  I  &  m''  Perci- 
vall Lowell  set  up  y'  Stakes  this  twenty  second  day  of  March,  1710-11, 
both  by  y"'  great  Rock  &  Gutter  and  River,  &  so  to  take  in  v"'  whole 
point  of  Rocks,  &  y'  Cove  therein  contained  was  y'^'  Place  where  he,  y 
said  Cap'  White,  had  his  Dock. 

Nathaniel  Brickett. 

Essex,  ss.  Nathaniel  Brickett  personally  appeared  before  us,  y  Sub- 
scribers, two  of  her  maj''^-  Justices  of  y'^'  peice  for  y'"  Countv  of  Essex. 
qiioi-iiDi  itiiiis.  upon  y  Land  abovementioned  and  made  oath  to  y'  Evi- 
dence above  written  this  twenty  second  day  of  March  1710-1  i. 

Thomas  Noves. 
Joseph  WooDHRiuoE.f 

j()sc]:)h  Hond,  Sr.,  of  Haverhill,  testified 

That  upwards  of  hfty  five  years  that  Land  where  Benjamin  Wood- 
bridge's  house  now  standeth  on  in  Newbury  and  all  the  Land  that  he 
has  inclosed  &  the  land  to  the  great  rock  adjoyning  to  it,  and  so  down 

•Essex  Deeds,  book  23,  p.im;  1 10,  t  Ibid.,  page  111. 


WHARVES    AND    DOCKS  153 

to  ye  River  by  ye  Great  Rocks,  taking  ye  whole  point  of  Land  to  said 
Woodbridge's  west  corner  of  his  Garden  adjoyning  to  the  Street  and 
gutter,  with  the  whole  cover  therein  contained,  and  the  fiatts  thereunto 
adjoyning,  have  been  possessed  by  Capt.  Paul  White  and  his  heirs  for 
above  fifty  five  years  last  past,  and  have  by  them  been  Improved  ever 
since  to  ve  best  of  my  knowledge,  and  I  never  knew  or  heard  yt  they 
have  been  molested  until  now.  The  Deponant  farther  saith  that  he 
came  to  be  acquainted  &  have  knowledge  of  ye  Land  above  mentioned 
by  Living  at  Newbury  formerly  &  by  since  trading  with  Capt.  Paul 
White  and  Anne,  his  wife,  unto  ye  time  of  their  deaths. 

Sworn  to  June  12,  1721  (book  39,  page  64). 

Joseph  Woodbridge,  son  of  Benjamin  Woodbridge,  was  the 
owner  of  this  wharf  property  in  1735.  In  the  year  1768 
deeds  of  conxeyance  are  recorded  from  Benjamin  and  Joseph 
Woodbridge  to  Thomas  Woodbridge  (book  122,  pages  16 
and   17). 

Sarah  Woodbridge  married  Stephen  Hooper,  of  Marble- 
head,  Oct.  10,  1764.  She  died  in  the  month  of  June,  1779, 
aged  forty-two.  Her  son,  Thomas  W'oodbridge  Hooper, 
inherited  "  from  his  mother  Sarah  Hooper,  deceased,"  the 
wliarf,  with  the  warehouses  standing  thereon. 

Nov.  6,  1798,  Moses  Brown  took  possession  of  this  prop- 
erty under  a  writ  of  execution  (book  163,  leaf  208). 

Nov.  9,  1 798,  Moses  Brown  sold  the  wharf,  dock,  and 
warehouses  to  Elias  Hunt  (book  163,  leaf  213). 

Feb.  7,  1799,  Elias  Hunt  sold  the  property  to  Abraham 
and  Ebenezer  Wheelwright  (book  165,  leaf  90). 

July  14,  1799,  William  Farris  bought  of  Abraham  and 
Ebenezer  Wheelwright  "  the  wharf  with  the  brick  dwelling 
house,  warehouses,  &c.,  &c.,  also  including  Ferry  Lane  and 
the  Ferry  ways"  (book  169,  leaf  20). 

April  20,  1805,  W^illiam  Farris  and  Ebenezer  Stocker  con- 
veyed this  property  to  Abraham  and  Ebenezer  W'heelwright. 

In  the  great  fire  of  181 1  the  warehouses  on  this  and  other 
wharves  in  the  neighborhood  were  burned  to  the  ground. 

May  7,  1675,  Richard  Dole  was  granted  "six  rods  and  a 
quarter  upon   the  point  of   land   that    lies   between   the   two 


154  OCLD   XEWBURY 

L;'uttcrs  that  conic  from  tlic  point  of  rocks  near  Watts  his 
cellar";  and  March  5,  1677-8,  "he  pro])osed  for  liberty  to 
build  a  dock  about  Watts  his  cellar,  and  as  many  of  the  town 
as  were  willing  to  help  him  about  it  he  will  accept  of  their 
helj)." 

On  the  twentieth  day  of  September,  1678,  a  committee 
appointed  for  that  purpose  laid  out  "  to  Richard  Dole,  senior, 
a  parcel  of  land  hing  near  Watts  his  cellar,  7t'//r;r  he  is  noxv 
bjiilding  a  wJiarf  and  dock  three  rods  broad  from  the  east 
side  of  the  west  gutter  to  a  stake  near  to  the  great  rock  with 
the  flats  adjoining  thereto  excepting  two  rods  in  breadth 
u}:)on  the  easterly  i)oint  of  upland,  which  is  to  lie  for  a  perpet- 
ual highway  for  the  town's  use  to  the  dock  for  to  unlade  hay, 
wood,  timber,  boards,  or  anything  else  which  is  produced  in 
or  ui^on  the  river,  it  not  being  imported  from  or  exported  to 
the  sea.  We  also  do  grant  the  town's  right,  title,  and  inter- 
est to  the  point  of  land  on  the  northerly  side  thereof,  which 
is  commonly  known  by  the  name  of  Captain  White's  point 
and  so  forth,  and  the  said  Dole  is  to  set  a  wharf  against  the 
two  rod  that  is  appointed  for  a  way  for  the  town's  use." 

In  the  Essex  Registry  of  Deeds,  book  39,  leaf  64,  are  the 
following  depositions  relating  to  Benjamin  Woodbridge's  land 
at  Dole's  dock,  sworn  to  Sept.  26,  1721  :  — 

Fawn  Clements  testified  "  that  about  thirty  years  ago,  I 
being  on  M'  Richard  Doles  wharfe,  y''  said  Richard  Dole 
called  me  to  him  and  showed  me  a  stake  within  two  or  three 
foot  of  y"  great  rock  as  he  called  it,  which  great  rock  the 
South  end  of  the  warehouse  now  standeth  on,  and  he  told  me 
that  Stake  was  y''  bounds  of  his  Land,  and  he  told  me  y''  way 
leading  to  y'^  Dock  was  on  y''  I'^ast  side  of  s'^  Stake." 

Edward  Poor  testified  "  that  about  fort)'  years  ago,  I 
working  in  M'  Richard  Doles  employ  on  his  wharfe  and  load- 
ing and  unloading  vessels  in  y"'  clock  and  going  to  sea  in  his 
Imploy,  and  the  highway  down  to  tlie  dock  we  always  made 
use  of  and  Improved  at  )■''  east  end  of  y''  warehouse  where 
Cap'  Kents  dwelling  house  now  Standeth,  &  so  down  into  y" 
dock  ;  &  y''  Land  in  Henjamin  Woodbridges  possesson  was 
then    Im]iro\x'd    b\'    ])lanting    of    trees,    and    was    always    ac- 


WHARVES    AND    DOCKS  155 

counted  Cap*  Paul  Whites,  &  I  never  heard  M''  Richard  Dole 
Claime  or  Challenge  any  Land  to  y''  Eastward  of  the  high- 
way, but  his  Land  was  always  accounted  on  y''  west  side  of 
s'^  way." 

Caleb  Moody  and  Henry  Rolfe,  two  of  the  selectmen  of 
Newbury,  testified  that  they  were  "  appointed  by  y''  Town 
of  Newbury  to  renew  y''  bounds  of  a  way  to  the  dock  at  y"^ 
end  of  fish  street.  When  we  were  viewing  y*"  said  way.  Cap' 
Stephen  Greenleafe  came  to  us,  and  Shewed  us  a  Stake 
which  he  declared  to  be  the  bounds  between  M""  Benjamin 
Woodbridge  and  himselfe,  which  stake  was  about  nine  feet 
to  the  eastward  of  the  house  which  Cap'  Stephen  Greenleafe 
sold  to  Cap'  Richard  Kent,  and  that  the  way  which  ||we||  the 
depon'*  with  y"  rest  of  y"  Selectmen  were  Imployed  to  renew 
y*"  bounds  of  appeared  to  us  by  record,  &c.,  to  be  to  the 
Northwestward  of  y"  above  mentioned  Stake." 

When  these  depositions  were  taken,  the  wharf  built  by 
Richard  Dole  had  passed  into  the  possession  of  Colonel 
Richard  Kent,  as  will  appear  by  the  following  deed  of  con- 
veyance dated  July  8,  1757  :  — 

Whereas  Col.  Richard  Kent,  late  of  Newbur}'.  deceased,  was  seized 
in  fee  of  house  and  wharf  called  Kents  wharf,  with  buildings,  docks, 
and  flats,  all  in  Newbury,' on  Merrimack  river,  near  or  adjacent  to  the 
lower  ferry  place,  in  whicli  said  house  said  Kent  dwelt  at  the  time  of 
his  decease  and  which  he  purchased  of  Capt.  Stephen  Greenleaf  Janu- 
ary 21,  171S-9,  and  April  20,  1719,  and  bo't  by  s'd  Greenleaf  of  Col. 
John  March  (or  his  heirs)  and  originally  granted  to  Richard  Dole  May 
7,  1675.  and  Sept.  19,  1678.  S'd  Col.  Richard  Kent,  by  will  dated 
May  6,  1740,  devised  to  his  wife  Hannah  the  house,  &c.,  for  her  life, 
remainder  to  his  son  John  Kent,  and,  if  he  should  die  without  issue, 
then  to  his  daughters.  John  Kent  having  died  without  issue,  the 
widow  and  daughters  by  this  deed  convey  to  Patrick  Tracy  land  and 
buildings  bounded  and  described,  &c.,  signed  by  Haxnah  Kent,  widow 
of  Richard  Kent,  Elizabeth  Burt,  widow,  Dudlev  Atkixs  Tyng 
and  wife  Sarah. 

(Essex  Deeds,  book  106,  page  43.) 

The  land  conveyed  by  this  deed  was  evidently  only  a  por- 
tion of  the  original  grant  to  Richard  Dole.      At  a  later  date, 


IS6  OUl.D    XEIVBURY 

Elizabeth  Hurt,  widow,  sold  to  Tristram  Coffin  and  Samuel 
Allyne  Otis  (book  162,  page  250),  and  to  William  Welstead 
Prout  (book  160,  \>'^gQ  168)  land,  with  buildings  thereon,  ex- 
tending apparently  from  Merrimack  Street  to  land  C()n\e)'ed 
as  above  to  Patrick  Tracy.  Tristram  Coffin  and  Samuel 
Allyne  Otis  sold  their  one-half  part  of  this  property  to  An- 
thony and  Moses  Davenport,  Jan.  i,  1799  (book  164,  page 
198). 

Patrick  Tracy  retained  possession  of  the  wharf  purchased 
of  the  widow  and  daughters  of  Colonel  Richard  Kent  until 
Feb.  9,  1779,  when  he  conveyed  it  to  his  son  Nathaniel 
Tracy  (book  136,  page  293). 

Dec.  24,  1782,  the  adjoining  estate,  consisting  of  land, 
house,  etc.,  formerly  owned  and  occupied  by  John  Greenleaf, 
was  purchased  b}'  Nathaniel  Tracy  (book  140,  page  79). 

July  24,  1786,  Mr.  Tracy  was  involved  in  financial  diffi- 
culties, and  mortgaged  "  the  wharf  bought  of  his  father  Pat- 
rick Tracy,  lying  near  the  lower  end  of  P'ish  Street  in  New- 
bur}'port,  adjoining  Merrimac  Street,  with  land  I  purchased 
of  Benjamin  Greenleaf  adjoining.  The  house  on  wharf 
property  fronting  on  Merrimac  Street "  (book  145,  page 
250). 

March  8,  1788,  Nathaniel  Tracy  o;ave  a  mortgage  of 
the  equity  of  this  property  to  Thomas  Russell  (book  149, 
page  24). 

April  10,  1794,  Tht)mas  Russell  sold  to  Nicholas  Johnson 
and  John  Greenleaf,  the  wharf,  house,  etc.  (book  158,  page 
80). 

Nov.  29,  1800,  John  (}reenleaf  ga\e  a  quitclaim  deed  of 
the  brick  store  and  land  under  the  same  to  Nicholas  Johnson 
(book  I  70,  page  13). 

No\\  29,  1800,  Nicholas  Johnson  ga\e  a  quitclaim  deed  of 
the  wharf,  "  excei)t  the  brick  store  on  the  premises,"  to  John 
Greenleaf  (book  168,  page  174). 

For  many  years  the  wharf  remained  in  the  possession  of 
Mr.  Greenleaf,  and  was  long  known  as  (ireenleaf's  Wharf  and 
afterward  as  City  Wharf.  It  is  now  owned  and  occupied  b\- 
the  l*hila(lel])hia  &  Reading  Coal  and  Iron  Compan\-. 


WHARVES    AND    DOCKS  157 

Between  the  land  granted  and  laid  out  to  Captain  Paul 
White  April  25,  1655,  and  the  land  granted  to  Richard  Dole 
Sept.  20,  1678,  there  was  a  narrow  strip  that  was  afterward 
used  as  a  way  to  the  ferry.  The  privilege  of  transporting 
passengers  from  this  point,  over  the  Merrimack  River,  to  the 
Salisbury  shore  was  granted  to  Colonel  John  March  in   1687. 

In  the  town  records,  under  date  of  Jan.  5,  1679-80,  is  the 
following  memorandum  :  — 

Concerning  Ensign  Greenleafs  and  Mr.  Davisons  proposition  for  a 
wharf,  It  was  voted  and  granted  they,  their  heirs  and  assigns,  should 
have  at  the  point  of  Rocks  above  Watts  his  Sellar  a  place  for  to  build 
a  Wharf,  to  be  three  score  foote  at  high  water  mark  for  tlie  front  &  so 
down  to  low  water  mark.  Provided  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  shall 
have  liberty  to  land  wood  or  hay  or  other  goods,  so  that  the  said  goods 
be  not  above  twenty-four  hours,  neither  at  any  time  to  do  them  damage. 

If  a  wharf  was  built  at  the  point  of  rocks  above  Watts' 
Cellar  previous  to  the  year  1 700,  no  deeds  or  conveyances  of 
the  property  have  been  discovered  ;  and  no  attempt  has  there- 
fore been  made  to  locate  it  on  the  map. 

March  i.  1679-S0. 

At  a  legall  meeting  of  the  freemen  &  Towne  Nathaniel  Clarke  pro- 
posed for  a  parcel  of  the  flats  on  the  south  east  side  of  the  point  of 
Rocks  that  was  granted  to  Capt.  White,  about  three  Rods  broad  at  hy 
water  mark  &  so  to  low  water  mark,  to  make  a  wharf. 

This  proposition  was  voted  and  granted,  but  the  Towne's  Inhabitants 
shall  haue  free  liberty  to  land  goods  upon  it,  provided  they  do  not  let 
them  ly  to  Damnify  the  owner;  And  the  wharfe  is  to  be  made  up  within 
three  years  or  else,  if  it  be  not  done  then,  the  land  is  to  returne  to  the 
Towne  againe. 

Nathaniel  Clark  died  Aug.  25,  1690.  There  is  no  deed 
conveying  this  property  to  any  other  person  or  persons  pre- 
vious to  the  year  1700. 

March  i,  1679-80. 

Benjamin  Rolfe,  Dr.  Dole,  &  his  brother  Richard  Dole  proposed  for 
foure  or  five  Rod  on  the  fiats  from  Watts  cellar  spring  to  Ensign  Green- 
leafs  &  Mr.  Davisons  grant  from  hy  water  marke  to  low  water  marke  to 
build  a  wharfe,  &  a  place  to  build  vessels  upon. 


158  OULD   NEWBfRY 

This  was  also  x'oted  &  granted,  so  that  the}'  come  not  within  10  or  a 
dozen  foot  of  the  Spring,  and  the  Inhabitants  of  the  Towne  shall  have 
free  liberty  to  land  any  goods  upon  it  with  pay,  so  that  they  do  not 
damnify  the  owners.  And  thev  are  to  make  up  the  said  wharfe  within 
three  years  or  else  the  land  is  to  returne  to  be  for  the  Townes  use. 

This  wharf  was  not  built  witliin  the  three  years'  limit. 
The  land  reverted  to  the  town,  and  was  granted  to  Stephen 
Greenleaf  March   i,  1696-7. 

At  a  town  meeting  held  Jan.  10,  1686-7,  the  following 
action  in  relation  to  Mr.  Daniel  Davison's  grant  was  re- 
corded :  — 

Being  mett,  iM''  Davison  having  formerly  proposed,  The  Towne 
Granted  him  a  piece  of  Ground  of  twenty  foot  wide  Joyning  to  M'' 
Doles  Cirant  ne.xt  to  his  ware  house  &  thirty-five  foot  long  towards  doc'' 
Doles  house  and  M""  Tuckers. 

Lieu'  Greenleaf,  Serj.  Moody.  &  Dr.  Dole  were  appointed  to  lay  out 
s'd  lands. 

On  the  second  day  of  April,  1687,  Stephen  Greenleaf,  Sr., 
Caleb  Moody,  and  John  Dole,  lot  layers,  laid  out  to  Daniel 
Da\'ison  a  tract  of  land  bounded  as  follows  :  — 

Northerly  twenty  feet  from  a  rock  by  the  .Slough  next  M""  Dole's 
warehouse  grant  and  so  to  a  stake  by  the  highway  between  ye  s"d  M'' 
Davisons  house  &  that,  easterly  thirty-five  feet  by  the  said  highway, 
southerly  twenty  feet  from  ye  s'l  way  to  the  Slough,  westerly  from  the 
above  said  corner  rock  thirty  five  feet  along  l)y  the  said  Slough. 

There  is  no  conveyance  of  this  ])roperty  from  Daniel 
Davison  recorded  previous  to  the  )-car   1700. 

March  1,  1695-6,  the  town  granted  .Ste})hen  (ireenleaf  four 
or  fixe  I'ods  of  land  near  Watts'  Cellar  "to  build  a  wharfe  and 
a  ])lace  to  build  \-essels  u])])on  "  on  condition  tliat  the  grant 
"come  not  within  ten  or  tweh'c  feet  ot  the  spring.  " 

March  2,  1696-7,  'i'ristram  Coffin  and  lleiuy  .Sliort,  lot 
layers,  laid  out  "to  Capt.  .Stephen  Crcenlcal'  a  paicell  of  flats 
and  Rocks  L)'ing  on  Merrimack  Rixer  nccr  Watts  Cellar, 
boundetl  northerl)-  b}-  the  rix'cr  Merrimack  at  low  water  maik, 


WHARVES    AXD    DOCKS  I59 

Easterly  by  Maj.  DaA-ison's  Grant,  southerly  b)'  the  Common 
Land  of  Newbury,  and  the  westerly  bound  comes  w"'"  about 
fifteen  foote  of  the  spring,  w'^''  land  we  have  laid  out  and 
bounded  to  s''  Capt.  Greenleaf  on  the  terms  and  conditions 
that  it  was  granted  to  him  b)'  the  Towne." 

June  1 6,  1699,  Captain  Stephen  Greenleaf  sold  to  Benaiah 
lltcomb  a  "lot  of  flats  and  rocks  in  Newbury  granted  to  me 
near  Watts  Cellar"   (Essex  Deeds,  book  17,  page  72). 

Jan.  16,  1694-5,  the  town  granted  to  Hugh  March  and 
Captain  John  March  "  a  piece  of  ground  and  flatts  to  build  a 
wharf  and  dock  near  Captain  March's  barn."  July  4,  171  3, 
Captain  Hugh  March  sold  to  John  Calef,  clothier,  "land  and 
flats  in  Newbury,  granted  by  the  town  to  myself  and  brother 
John  March,  lately  deceased"  (Essex  Deeds,  book  25,  page 
236). 

Dec.  26,  1723,  Susannah  Jacobs,  widow,  of  Boston,  for 
^300,  conveyed  to  Captain  William  Walker,  of  Great  Britain, 
mariner,  house,  warehouse,  land  and  flats,  bounded  south  by 
the  country  road,  west  by  Hugh  Pike,  or  by  a  town  way  lead- 
ing to  the  water  side  between  the  lots,  north  by  Merrimack 
River,  east  by  Captain  Edward  Sargent,  or  highway  between 
the  lots,  formerly  the  estate  of  John  Calef,  recovered  of  him 
on  judgment  by  said  Susannah  Jacobs  in  April,  1721  (book 
42,  page  90). 

Oct.  25,  1729,  William  Walker  to  Joseph  Atkins,  the  es- 
tate described  substantially  the  same  as  above  (book  58,  page 
252). 

Nov.  29,  1782,  William  Atkins  to  Benjamin  Harrod,  land, 
house,  flats,  etc.,  "  being  the  same  premises  conveyed  by 
William  Walker  to  my  late  father,  Joseph  Atkins "  (book 
140,  page  59). 

March  24,  1798,  Mary  Harrod,  administratrix  of  the  estate 
of  Benjamin  Harrod,  to  Abraham  Jackson,  a  river  lot  in  New- 
buryport,  beginning  at  the  southerly  corner  by  Water  Street 
and  a  town  landing,  and  running  northeastwardly  by  said 
landing  to  the  channel  of  Merrimack  River,  with  half  the 
house  and  half  the  land  belonging  to  the  Harrod  lot,  so  called 
(book  164,  page  33). 


WHARVES    AXD    DOCKS  i6i 

Oct.  7,  1830,  Ann  Jackson  and  others,  heirs  to  the  estate 
of  Abraham  Jackson,  conveyed  to  William  Hervey  and  John 
Orne  the  above  described  one-half  part  of  the  Harrod  wharf 
property  (book  262,  page  279). 

Aug.  9,  1833,  William  Hervey  and  John  Orne  conveyed 
the  same  to  the  United  States  (book  272,  page  160). 

Aug.  9,  1833,  Mary  Harrod,  widow,  and  others  conveyed 
the  other  half  of  this  wharf  property  to  the  United  States 
(book  272,  page  159). 

On  this  wharf  the  United  States  built  a  substantial  stone 
structure  that  has  ever  since  been  occupied  as  a  custom- 
house. The  city  of  Xewburyport  is  the  port  of  entry  for  the 
district,  which  extends  from  the  State  of  New  Hampshire  to, 
and  includes,  the  town  of   Ipswich,  Mass. 

Edward  Sargent,  whose  name  appears  as  the  owner  of 
wharf  property  in  Newbury  in  the  year  1700,  bought  of 
Thomas  Thurloe,  Sept.  30,  1695,  land  bounded  easterly 
on  Merrimack  River  and  northerly  on  land  of  Hugh  March 
and  Captain  John  March  (Essex  Deeds,  book  11,  leaf  52). 

He  is  said  to  have  lived  in  Saco,  Me.,  and  Portsmouth, 
N.  H.  He  came  to  Newbury  in  1690.  He  had  charge  of 
the  lower  ferry  from  September,  1691,  until  the  year  1720, 
and  was  involved  in  a  long  and  tedious  lawsuit  with  the 
heirs  of  George  Carr  in  regard  to  the  rights  and  privileges 
granted  the  said  George  Carr  by  the  General  Court. 

He  was  licensed  to  keep  an  ordinary  in  1 692  ;  and  his 
license  was  annually  renewed  until  17 16,  and  possibly  for 
four  or  five  years  longer.  His  tavern  was  on  the  wharf  just 
below  the  present  custom-house.  Eeb.  12,  1721-22,  he  sold 
to  Joseph  Greenleaf,  innholder,  the  following  described  real 
estate :  — 

Bounded  by  ye  highway  as  ye  fence  now  stands  southerly,  by  land 
formerly  granted  to  Capt.  John  March  westerly,  by  the  river  Merrimack 
northerly,  and  ranging  from  ye  road  or  highway  above  s'd  streight  with 
the  east  end  of  my  Tavorn  house  where  ye  said  Joseph  Greenleaf  now 
dwells  to  low  water  mark  easterly,  together  with  my  said  Tavorn  house, 
stable,  garden,  thereon  being  and  standing,   .   .   .   and  full  privelege  of 


1 62  OULD   NEWBURY 

passing  and  repassing  upon  niv  land  which  Ives  between  ye  said  Tavorn 
house  and  that  house  of  mine  wherein  John  Calfe  now  dwells  (Essex 
Deeds,  book  40.  leaf  148). 

After  tlic  year  1700  the  whar\-e.s  and  docks  along  the  river- 
side steadily  increased  in  number.  As  early  as  1730,  William 
Johnson,  John  Greenleaf,  and  others  were  granted  liberty  to 
build  a  wharf  at  the  foot  of  Chandler's  Lane,  afterwards 
called  "the  lower  long  wharf,"  and  at  the  same  time  Abiel 
Somerby  was  granted  permission  to  build  a  wharf  at  the  foot 
of  Ordway's  Lane  that  was  subsequently  designated  "  the 
upper  long  wharf  "  ;  and  between  these  two  extreme  points 
other  active  and  enterprising  merchants  had  their  warehouses 
and  docks. 

The  growing  demands  of  commerce  ultimately  led  to  the 
construction  of  wharves  and  ship-yards  beyond  these  limits, 
and  the  foreign  and  domestic  trade  continued  prosperous  and 
profitable  until  the  beginning  of  the  Revolutionary  War. 
During  that  season  of  prosperity  Michael  Dalton,  Patrick 
Tracy,  Stephen  Hooper,  Joseph  Marquand,  Moses  Brown, 
and  William  Bartlett  were  among  the  most  prominent  ex- 
porters and    importers    in   the   colony  of  Massachusetts   Bay. 

\\\  the  summer  of  1775  the  scene  along  these  wharves  was 
animated  and  exciting.  Privateers  were  being  made  ready 
for  active  service ;  and  the  first  one,  owned  by  Nathaniel 
Trac)',  then  a  young  man  twenty-four  }'ears  of  age,  sailed 
from  Newburyport  in  the  month  of  August.  On  the  nine- 
teenth day  of  September  troops  to  the  number  of  ten  or 
twehe  hundred  men,  under  the  conunand  of  Colonel  Benedict 
Arnold,  embarked  on  board  ten  transports  moored  at  the 
whar\'es  near  the  centre  of  the  town,  and  were  taken  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Kennebec  River  to  join  tlic  expedition  for  the 
capture  of  Uuebec. 

While  the  war  lasted,  trade  with  foreign  countries  almost 
entirely  ceased  ;  but  armed  cruisers  and  privateers  were  con- 
stantl}'  arrixing  and  departing,  ami  occasionalh'  prizes  of 
great  \alue  were  cai)ture(l  and  hi-ought  safeh'  into  ])ort. 
Witli  the  return   of  jieace  mcrchantinen  were  again  Iniilt  ant! 


WHARVES    AND    DOCKS  163 

rigged  on  the  Merrimack  River,  and  business  of  all  kinds 
awakened   to   new  life. 

The  embargo  of  1807  and  the  War  of  18 12  checked  the 
commercial  prosperity  of  the  town,  and  the  introduction  of 
railroads  and  the  de\'elopment  of  steam-power  within  the  past 
fifty  years  have  gradually  concentrated  the  bulk  of  the  for- 
eign and  coasting  trade  in  two  or  three  large  cities  on  the 
Atlantic  coast. 

The  old  wharves  of  Newbur}'port  are  comparatix'el}'  de- 
serted ;  but  the  half-tone  print  on  a  preceding  page  gives  a 
partial  view  of  them  as  they  were  in  the  year  1864,  with  the 
ship  "  Sapphire,"  built  by  John  Currier,  Jr.,  lying  at  City 
Wharf,  and  the  bark  "  Mar)'  Alice,"  built  by  James  Merrill, 
at  Brown's  Wharf. 


THE  NOYES  HOUSE. 


The  Rev.  Thomas  Parker,  first  pastor  of  the  church  in 
Newbury,  was  born  in  1595,  came  to  Ipswich  in  May,  1634, 
and  ■  from  thence  to  Newbury  in  1635.  He  was  the  only 
son  of  the  Rev.  Robert  Parker,  an  eminent  clergyman  and 
scholar  of  Wiltshire,  England,  who  on  account  of  his  relig- 
ious opinions  was  obliged  to  take  refuge  in  Holland,  where 
he  died  in    16 14. 

The  Rev.  James  Noyes  was  born  in  Choulderton,  Wilt- 
shire, in  1608,  and  educated  at  Oxford.  After  his  arrival  in 
New  England  he  preached  for  some  months  at  Medford,  but 
came  to  Newbury  in  1635,  and  was  settled  as  teacher  of  the 
church  (at  its  organization),  with  the  Rev.  Thomas  Parker 
as  pastor.  His  father  was  the  Rev.  William  Noyes,  who 
married  Anne  Stephens,  daughter  of  Nicholas  Stephens, 
Esq.,  of  Burdrop  Manor,  in  Wiltshire,  England.  The  Re\-. 
Robert  Parker  married  Dorothy  Stephens,  a  sister  of  Anne 
Stephens  ;  and,  therefore,  the  Rev.  James  Noyes  was  a  cousin 
of  the  Rev.  Thomas  Parker,  and  not  a  nephew,  as  is  some- 
times erroneously  stated.  In  the  last  will  of  Mr.  Noyes  he 
speaks  of  Thomas  Parker  as  "  cozen." 

Cotton  Mather,  in  the  "  ^lagnalia,"  says  of  them  :  — 

They  taught  in  one  school  (in  England):  came  over  in  one  ship; 
were  pastor  and  teacher  of  one  church;  and  'Sir.  Parker  continuing 
always  in  celibacy,  they  lived  in  one  house  till  death  separated  them  for 
a  time. 

Their  first  residence  in  Newbury  was  at  the  Lower  Green  ; 
but,  on  the  removal  of  the  meeting-house  in  1646  to  the 
Upper  Green,  Mr.  Noyes  built  a  house  on  what  is  now  known 
as  Parker  Street,  and  lived  there  until  his  death. 


1 66  OULD  NEWBURY 

In  the  Proprietors'  Book,  pai;"e  12,  it  is  recorded  that, 

In  consideration  of  Mr.  James  Xoyes  his  Resigning  up  into  the 
towns  hands  four  acres  by  the  River  side,  two  acres  in  Richard  Kents 
Island.  &  four  acres  in  the  Neck  behind  the  Great  Swamp,  they  granted 
him  eight  acres  by  tlie  new  Pond  at  the  new  Towne  to  Continue  to  him 
and  his  heyrs  for  euer. 

There  is  no  date  to  this  record  ;  but  it  is  probable  that  the 
grant  did  not  take  effect  until  1646,  as  the  commissioners 
appointed  in  1642  to  lay  out  the  new  town  ordered  "that 
in  respect  of  the  time  for  the  inhabitants  remo\'eing  from  the 
place  they  now  inhabit  to  that  which  is  layed  out  and  ap- 
pointed for  their  new  habitations  each  inhabitant  shall  have 
their  house  lotts  foure  years  from  the  day  of  the  date  of  this 
commission." 

The  house  was  built  about  this  time  ;  and  the  two  cousins, 
minister  and  teacher,  lived  there  in  pleasant  companionship 
for  nearly  ten  years.  Mr.  Noyes  died  Oct.  22,  1656,  aged 
forty-eight.      Mr.  Parker,  writing  of  him,  says:  — 

Mr.  James  Noyes.  my  worthy  colleague  in  tlie  ministrv  of  the  gospel. 
was  a  man  of  singular  qualitications,  in  piety  e.xcelling.  an  implacable 
enemy  to  all  heresie  and  schism,  and  a  most  able  warriour  against  the 
same.  He  was  of  a  reaching  and  ready  apprehension,  a  large  inven- 
tion, a  most  profound  judgment,  a  rare  and  tenacious  and  comprehen- 
sive memory,  fixed  and  unmovable  in  his  grounded  conceptions :  sure 
in  words  and  speech,  without  rashness ;  gentle  and  mild  in  all  his  ex- 
pressions, without  passion  or  provoking  language.  And.  as  he  was  a 
notable  disputant,  so  he  never  would  provoke  his  adversary,  saving  by 
the  strong  knocks  and  heavy  weight  of  argument.  He  was  of  so  loving 
and  compassionate  and  humble  carriage  that  I  believe  never  were  anv 
acquainted  with  him  but  did  desire  the  continuance  of  his  society  and 
acquaintance. 

The  will  of  the  Rev.  James  Noyes,  dated  Oct.  17,  1656, 
and  })ro\"ed  Xo\'.  21,  1656,  gave  all  his  real  and  ]x'rsona] 
property  to  his  wife.  In  the  in\-entor}-  of  his  estate,  tiled  in 
the  Probate  Office  at  .Salem,  mention  is  made  of  "  a  liouse 
with  seven  acres  of  land  adjoining,  and  an  orchard,"  all 
valued  at  ;^iOO.     The  enclosure  described  as  "an  orchard" 


THE    NO  YES    HOUSE  167 

will  account  for  the  additional  acre  named  in  the  original 
grant. 

His  widow  and  children  still  continued  to  live  in  the  house, 
with  the  Rev.  Thomas  Parker  as  an  honored  member  of  the 
family.  Mr.  Parker  died  unmarried  April  24,  1677.  After 
the  death  of  Mrs.  Noyes,  which  occurred  ten  or  twelve  years 
later,  the  house  passed  into  the  possession  of  her  son  Thomas, 
who  married  Sarah  Greenleaf ;  and  for  several  successive 
generations  they  and  their  children  and  their  children's  chil- 
dren resided  there,  the  last  occupant.  Miss  Mary  Coffin 
Noyes,  of  the  sixth  generation  from  the  Rev.  James  Noyes, 
having  died  Jan.    26,    1895. 

The  old  house  is  still  in  a  good  state  of  preservation,  as 
will  be  seen  by  a  glance  at  the  photographic  view  on  page 
164.  The  heavy  oak  frame  shows  no  sign  of  decay,  and  the 
repairs  that  have  been  made  from  time  to  time  have  kept  the 
exterior  walls  in  good  order  and  condition.  The  chimney 
was  formerly  about  four  yards  square  at  the  base,  and  ex- 
tended nearly  to  the  back  wall  of  the  house.  About  fifteen 
years  ago  it  became  necessary  to  somewhat  reduce  its  size. 
In  doing  this,  the  existence  of  a  secret  closet  was  discovered. 
There  was  no  entrance  to  it  from  either  the  first  or  second 
story,  and  the  only  way  it  could  have  been  reached  was  from 
the  cellar.  It  was  evidently  constructed  for  the  purpose  of 
providing  a  safe  hiding-place  for  gold  and  silver  and  valuable 
household  effects. 

The  winds  have  blown  and  the  rains  have  descended  and 
beaten  upon  the  old  house  for  two  centuries  and  a  half  ;  but 
it  still  stands,  a  memorial  of  the  past,  closely  identified  with 
the  early  history  of  Newbury  and  the  domestic  life  of  two 
of  its  eminent  divines. 


THE  COFFIN   HOUSE. 


Tristram  Coffin,  the  first  of  that  name  who  came  to  Amer- 
ica, was  born  in  Brixton,  county  of  Devon,  England,  and  with 
his  wife  (Dionis  Stevens),  mother,  two  sisters  (Mary  and 
Eunice),  and  five  children  settled  at  Salisbury,  Mass.,  in 
1642,  but  removed  to  Haverhill  the  same  year.  In  Novem- 
ber, 1642,  his  name  appears  as  a  witness  to  a  deed  of  land 
from  two  Indian  sachems  to  the  inhabitants  of  that  town. 
Two  of  his  children,  I\Iar}'  and  John,  were  born  during  his 
residence  at  Haverhill.  In  1647  he  removed  to  Newbury; 
and  May  26  of  that  year  he  was  authorized  by  the  General 
Court  "to  keep  an  ordinary  and  also  a  ferry"  for  the  trans- 
portation of  passengers  from  Newbury  to  Salisbury,  in  con- 
nection with  Mr.  George  Carr. 

While  Tristram  Cofifin  was  ferryman,  passengers  were 
usually  taken  from  the  Newbury  side  through  the  narrow 
passage  between  Carr's  Island  and  Ram  Island,  and  thence 
to  the  Salisbury  shore.  At  this  time  he  owned  "forty  acres 
of  upland,  more  or  less,"  which  he  sold  in  1657,  after  his 
remo^•al  to  Salisbury,  "  being  halfe  the  four  score  acres 
which  I,  the  said  Tristram  Coffin,  lately  purchased  of  Mr. 
Edward  Rawson,  &  the  east  side  of  the  abovesaid  foure 
score  acres  being  bounded  with  the  land  of  William  Moody 
on  the  west,  Merrimack  river  over  against  Mr.  Carr's  iland 
on  the  north,  the  way  to  the  ferry  on  the  east,  and  the 
way  to  Artichoke  river  on  the  South."  From  the  descrip- 
tion given  in  this  deed,  recorded  in  the  Ipswich  Series,  book 
I,  page  645,  it  is  evident  that  this  land  was  opposite  Carr's 
Island,  and  on  the  westerly  side  of  what  is  now  known  as 
Jefferson  Street  ;  but  there  is  no  mention  of  a  house  or  build- 
ings of  any  kind  in  the  conveyance. 


170  OULD   XEU'RL'RY 

In  1659,  he  went  to  Nantucket,  and  jnn-chased  for  himself 
and  his  associates  many  thousand  acres  of  land.  I'Larly  in 
1660,  he  removed  with  his  famil)'  to  the  island,  where  he 
lived    until    his   death    in    1681. 

His  son  Tristram  Coffin,  Jr..  was  born  in  Brixton,  Eng- 
land, in  1632.  He  came  to  New  England  with  his  father, 
and  married,  in  Newbury,  March  2,  1653,  Judith  Somerby, 
widow  of  Henry  Somerb}'.  and  daughter  of  Edmund  and 
Sarah  Greenleaf.  Some  authorities  claim  that  the  rear  part 
of  the  old  Coffin  house  was  built  by  Henry  Somerb}'  prexious 
to  his  death,  and  that  it  was  the  home  of  his  widow  at  the 
time  of  her  marriage  to  Tristram  Coffin,  Jr.  It  is  cn'ident 
that  the  house,  as  first  built,  faced  the  south,  as  nearly  all  old 
houses  do  ;  and  tradition  says  the  side  door  was  once  the  front 
door.  Tristram  Coffin  and  Judith,  his  wife,  had  ten  children  ; 
and  for  the  better  accommodation  of  the  family  it  became 
necessary  to  enlarge  the  house.  When  the  addition  was 
made,  it  was  built  across  the  easterly  end  ;  and  a  new  door 
was  provided,  opening  to  the  street.  Subsequently  the  house 
was  occupied  by  two  families,  one  using  the  side  entrance 
e:tclusively,  and  the  other  using  the  front  entrance.  The 
rustic  porch  o\-er  the  front  door,  almost  concealed  by  the 
thick  growth  of  climbing  vines,  was  added  at  a  comparatively 
recent  date ;  but  •  otherwise  the  old  house  stands  to-day 
substantially  the  same  in  outward  appearance  as  it  did  when 
Tristram  Coffin  resided  there. 

For  more  than  half  a  century  he  occupied  the  house,  and 
for  twenty  years  was  deacon  of  the  first  church  in  Newbury. 
April  29,  1668,  he  was  made  a  freeman  of  the  colony;  and 
in  1695  he  was  elected  representati\e  to  the  (General  Court, 
and  again  in  the  years  1700,  1701,  and  1702.  He  tlied 
Feb.  4,  1704. 

His  youngest  son,  Nathaniel,  born  March  26,  1669,  was 
the  ne.\t  owner  of  the  propert)'.  He  married  Sarah,  daugh- 
ter of  Samuel  Hrocklebank  of  l-iowley,  widow  of  Henry  Dole 
of  Newbury,  March  29,  1693.  He  was  deacon  of  the  church 
in  Newbur\' ;  and  ( )ct.  9,  1711.  he  was  elected  town  clerk, 
which  office  he  continued  to  hold  until  his  death. 


THE    COFFiy    HOUSE  171 

He  was  representative  to  the  General  Court  for  the  years 
1 719,  1720,  and  1 72 1,  councillor  of  the  province  in  1730, 
and  special  justice  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  for  Essex 
County  in  1734.  He  had  eig-ht  children.  Two  of  them,  the 
Rev.  Enoch  Coffin  and  Samuel  Brocklebank  Coffin,  graduated 
at  Harvard  College.  He  died  Feb.  20,  1748-9,  when  nearly 
eighty  years  old. 

His  son,  Colonel  Joseph  Coffin,  born  Dec.  30,  1702,  was 
the  next  occupant  of  the  house.  He  married  July  15,  1725, 
Margaret  Morse,  daughter  of  Benjamin  Morse.  He  was 
elected  town  clerk  in  1749,  and  served  in  that  capacity  until 
the  day  of  his  death.  He  had  eight  children.  Two  of  them, 
the  Rev.  Paul  Coffin,  D.D.,  and  Charles  Coffin,  M.D.,  gradu- 
ated at  Harvard  College.  He  died  Sept.  12,  1773.  During 
the  latter  part  of  his  life  his  son  Joshua,  born  Jan.  9,  1731, 
occupied  one-half  of  the  house.  This  son,  afterward  known 
as  Major  Joshua  Coffin,  married  Sarah  Bartlett  Jan.  21,  1755. 
They  had  twelve  children,  one  of  whom,  the  Rev.  P2benezer 
Coffin,  graduated  at  Harvard  College.  A  letter  written  Sept. 
27,  1764,  by  Joshua  Coffin,  and  addressed  to  his  father. 
Colonel  Joseph  Coffin,  gives  a  glimpse  of  the  domestic  life 
of  that  day,  and  indicates  an  estrangement  between  father 
and  son.      The  letter  reads  as  follows  :  — 

Honored  S/r, 

'Tis  in  your  power  to  make  my  life  (as  to  outward  circumstances) 
either  Happy  or  Miserable,  &  I  am  sure  'twould  be  with  the  Greatest 
Regrett  I  should  do  anything  to  Render  your  life  uneasy.  I  don't  ask 
you  to  give  me  house  or  land  at  present,  although  I  d'ont  think  in  that 
case  I  should  be  unreasonable  (considering  my  family  Increases  so  fast), 
but  at  present  I  only  ask  Leave  to  build  a  Bedroom  chimney  on  my  , 
own  cost  for  our  present  comfort.  Which,  when  you  have  properly 
weighed  the  affair  &  Considered  what  you  have  done  for  Bro.  David  & 
Paul,  not  to  mention  Boyd,  for  their  convenience,  &  my  present  need  of 
what  I  ask,  I  Cant  suppose  you  will  single  me  out  from  the  rest  of 
your  Children  as  an  object  of  your  Displeasure.  Since  I  don't  know 
as  either  of  them  have  done  more  to  merit  your  favor,  I  now  Intreat 
you,  S'',  in  this  Request  to  treat  me  only  as  a  son,  whose  happiness  so 
much  Depends  on  your  approbation  &  afection.  I  am,  S'',  with  all 
Due   Reverence  &  Duty.  Your  Dependent  son, 

Joshua  Coffin. 


172  OULD   NEWBCRY 

The  writer  of  tlie  letter  quoted  abo\'e  died  March  30, 
1774.  about   six   mouths   after  the   death   of   his  father. 

The  liouse  aud  land  then  came  into  the  possession  of 
Joseph  CofThn,  born  Sept.  3,  1762,  and  Edmund  Coffin,  born 
Jan.  14,  1764,  sons  of  Major  Joshua  Coflin.  The  rear  or 
older  part  was  occuj^ied  by  Joseph  Cof^n,  who  married  Judith 
Toppan  in  October,  1791.  He  had  seven  children  by  his 
first  wife,  four  of  whom  died  in  infancy.  For  his  second  wife 
he  married  Margaret  Sutherland,  in  September,  1803.  He 
and  his  brother  Edmund  were  joint  owners  of  a  tan-yard  on 
the  place,  and  they  were  also  engaged  in  commerce  to  some 
extent.  He  died  Dec.  25,  1805  ;  and  by  his  will,  dated  May 
9,  1805,  he  gave  to  his  son  Joshua  "all  my  buildings,  with 
undivided  half  of  the  tann  yard  and  my  land  in  the  home- 
stead." 

His  brother  Edmund,  who  occupied  the  front  part  of  the 
house,  married  Mary  Moody,  Nov.  15,  1792,  by  whom  he  had 
six  children.  For  his  second  wife  he  married  Lucy  Kimball, 
April  25,  1809,  by  whom  he  had  five  children.  After  his 
death,  Oct.  23,  1825,  his  part  of  the  house  remained  for 
many  years  the  residence  of  his  widow  and  children.  In  the 
final  settlement  of  his  estate  it  was  conveyed  to  his  daughter, 
Miss  Lucy  Coffin. 

Joshua  Coffin,  who  by  the  will  of  his  father  came  into  pos- 
session of  one-half  of  the  house  in  1805,  was  born  Oct.  12, 
1792.  He  married  for  his  first  wife  Clarissa  Dutch  Dec.  2, 
1 81 7,  by  whom  he  had  two  children,  Sarah  Bartlett  Coffin 
and  Lucia  Top})an  Coffin.  For  his  second  wife  he  married 
Anna  W.  Chase  April  26,  1835,  by  whom  he  had  three 
children,  now  living,  namely,  I^lizabeth  \V.  (Coffin)  Cheney, 
Amia  L.  Coffin,  and  Mary  H.  Coffin. 

He  was  a  <rraduate  of  Dartmouth  College;  and  duiing  his 
earl}-  life  he  taught  school  in  East  lla\ei-hill  and  Hradfortl, 
Mass.,  in  Hampton,  N.  H.,  and  elsewliere.  He  was  elected 
town  clerk  of  Newbury  in  1850,  and  served  for  seven  years. 
He  was  also  justice  of  the  })eace  for  the  county  of  hLssex. 
\w  the  old  homestead,  where  he  was  born  and  where  he  died, 
he  collected  the  materials  for  and  prepared  the  History  of 
Newbur^•  for  publication. 


THE    COFFIX    HOUSE  173 

Whittier,  who  was  one  of  his  pupils,  has  pleasantly  alluded 
to  the  labors  of  his  old  friend  and  teacher  in  the  following 
lines,  addressed  "To  my  Old  Schoolmaster  "  :  — 

I, —  the  man  of  middle  years, 
In  whose  sable  locks  appears 
Many  a  warning  fleck  of  gray, — 
Looking  back  to  that  far  day. 
And  thy  primal  lessons,  feel 
Grateful  smiles  my  lips  unseal, 
As.  remembering  thee,  I  blend 
Olden  teacher,  present  friend. 
Wise  with  antiquarian  search 
In  the  scrolls  of  State  and  Church; 
Named  on  history's  title-page 
Parish  clerk  and  justice  sage  ; 
For  the  ferule's  wholesome  awe 
Wielding  now  the  sword  of  law. 

Joshua  Coffin  died  June  24,  1864;  and  his  part  of  the 
house  and  land  was  sold  to  Edmund  Coffin  Colman,  of 
Boston. 

At  the  death  of  Miss  Lucy  Coffin,  Nov.  8,  1893,  the 
other  half  of  the  property  came  into  the  possession  of  her 
nephews  and  nieces,  Jeremiah  Colman,  Edmund  Coffin  Col- 
man, Moses  J.  Colman,  Margaret  E.  (Colman)  Merriam, 
Susan  A.  Colman,  and  Lizzie  S.  (Colman)  Toppan,  chil- 
dren of  Moses  and  Elizabeth  Coffin  Colman. 

Tradition  asserts  that  the  centennial  anniversary  of  the  set- 
tlement of  Newbury  was  celebrated  in  1735  in  the  front  yard 
of  the  old  Coffin  house,  under  the  shade  of  a  lofty  elm,  re- 
markable for  its  great  size  and  graceful  shape.  A  small  num- 
ber of  interested  citizens  assembled  there,  and  participated 
in  the  exercises  ;  but  it  is  impossible  to  give  even  a  brief 
outline  of  the  proceedings,  as  none  of  the  details  have  come 
down  to  the  present  day.  The  noble  elm,  with  its  widely 
extended  branches,  was  one  of  the  prominent  landmarks  for 
miles  around ;  and,  when  brought  into  range  with  certain 
other  well-known  objects,  it  served  as  a  guide  for  vessels 
entering  or  leaving  the  harbor.      It  was  struck  by  lightning 


174 


OULD   NEWBURY 


on    several  occasions  ;  and,   in    consequence   of  its  [;"reat    age 
and    dila]iidated    condition,    it    was   cut   down  ten   or   fifteen 

years  ago.  Two  large 
elms  now  standing  on 
the  place  were  planted 
b)'  Joseph  Cofifin,  one 
of  them  in  1 792,  when 
liis  son  Joshua,  the 
historian,  was  born, 
and  the  other  in  i  794, 
when  his  son  Thomas 
was  born. 

Inside  the  house 
there  are  man)'  quaint 
old  relics  of  bygone 
days ;  and  around 
the  fireplace  in  the 
front  })arl()r  and  in 
the  chamber  above 
are  some  remarkable 
Dutch  tiles,  of  dark 
blue  and  dingy  white 
color,  illustrating  scenes  from  the  Bible,  among  them  "Jonah 
and  the  Whale "  and  "The  Miraculous  Draught  of  Fishes." 
But  the  chief  glor)-  of  all  these  mementoes  and  souvenirs  is 
the  old  dresser,  with  its  stock  of  pewter  plates  and  platters, 
as  it  stands  in  the  kitchen  where  it  has  stood  for,  perhap.s, 
two  centuries. 


DRESSER    IN    COFFIN    HOUSE. 


BLUE  ANCHOR  TAVERN. 


Hugh  March  settled  in  Newbury  previous  to  1650.  He 
was  by  occupation  house  carpenter  and  joiner.  He  sold, 
with  the  consent  of  his  wife  Judith,  March  14,  165  i,  a  small 
parcel  of  land  near  Merrimack  River  to  William  Thomas 
(Ipswich  Deeds,  book   i,  page   188   (510). 

In  1653,  Nicholas  Noyes'  wife,  Hugh  March's  wife,  and 
William  Chandler's  wife  were  each  presented  to  the  court 
"for  wearing  a  silk  hood  and  scarfe  "  in  violation  of  the  law 
specially  made  and  pro\aded  for  the  suppression  of  extrava- 
gance in  dress  ;  but  they  were  discharged  on  proof  that  their 
husbands  were  w^orth  ^200  each. 

Sept.  13,  1658,  Hugh  March  sold  to  Robert  Morse  "9 
acres  of  land  with  house,  orchard,  barn,  &c.,  in  the  little 
field  next  the  way  to  Merrimack  River,  bounded  on  the  west 
by  land  of  William  Thomas,  &c."  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  2, 
page  79  (165). 

At  this  date,  and  for  nearly  a  century  after,  large  quanti- 
ties of  sturgeon  were  annually  taken  from  the  rivers  Merri- 
mack and  Ouascacunquen.  William  Thomas  was  engaged  in 
the  business  of  pickling  and  packing  them  for  transportation. 
In  1667,  Israel  Webster  testified  "that  he  carried  twenty-two 
ferkins  and  kegs  of  sturgeon  from  William  Thomas'  cellar 
to  Boston";  and  a  petition  dated  May  7,  1673,  to  the  General 
Court,  signed  by  William  Thomas,  and  printed  in  full  on 
page  114  of  Coffin's  History  of  Newbury,  states  that  the 
petitioner,  then  seventy-four  years  of  age,  was  still  engaged 
in  the  business  of  "  boyling  and  pickling  of  sturgeon." 

In  1670,  Hugh  March  was  licensed  by  the  court  at  Ipswich 
"to  keep  an  ordinary  and  to  sell  strong  drink,"  and  every 
3'ear  until  1680  this  license  was  renewed.      Other  houses  of 


176  OULD   NEWBURY 

entertainment  were  opened  in  Newbury  previous  to  this  date, 
but  it  is  impossible  to  say  just  where  they  were  located. 

As  early  as  Sept.  2,  1635,  Francis  Plummer  was  licensed 
by  the  General  Court  "to  keep  an  ordinary."  At  a  later 
date  Edmund  Greenleaf,  and  afterward  Tristram  Coffin^  were 
granted  the  same  privilege.  On  the  twenty-seventh  day  of 
the  seventh  month  of  the  year  1653  the  court  held  at  Ips- 
wich decided,  after  due  deliberation,  that  "  Steven  Swett, 
being  p'sented  by  the  Townesmen  of  Newbury  to  keep  an 
Ordnarye,   is  alowed   by  this   court." 

Stephen  Swett  owned  at  that  time  a  dwelling-house,  with 
several  acres  of  land  adjoining  the  same,  on  the  westerh'  side 
of  High  Street,  near  the  head  of  Marlborough  Street.  This 
property  he  subsequently  sold  to  Hugh  March,  reserving  a 
small  portion  of  the  land  for  his  own  use.  This  fact  is  estab- 
lished by  an  agreement  or  certificate  duly  signed  and  sealed 
by  Hugh  March  on  the  twelfth  day  of  March,  1669-70,  in 
which  the  reservation  is  particularly  described  and  acknowl- 
edged (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  3,  page  215).  The  dimensions 
and  shape  of  the  land  reserved  are  very  nearly  the  same  as 
the  measurements  and  bounds  given  in  a  deed  from  the  heirs 
of  Colonel  John  March,  dated  March  31,  1713,  conve)-ing 
to  Captain  Henry  Lyon  the  house  and  land  that  afterward 
was  the  property  of  Isaiah  Ilsley.  It  also  appears  from  a 
petition  presented  to  the  court  at  Ipswich  in  1682  that, 
when  Hugh  March  began  business  as  an  innholder,  he  bought 
an  "  antient  tavern,"  and  expended  a  large  sum  of  money  in 
repairing  and  enlarging  it.  In  view  of  these  facts  it  is  reason- 
able to  conclude  that  the  place  where  Stephen  Swett  kept 
an  ordinary  from  the  year  1653  to  1667  was,  in  1670,  con- 
veyed to  the  newly  appointed  innholder,  although  no  record 
of  this  conveyance  can  be  found  in  the  Registry  of  Deeds 
at   Salem. 

For  several  )'ears  previous  to  the  appointment  of  Hugh 
March  as  innkeeper  there  seems  to  have  been  considerable 
difficult)'  in  finding  a  suitable  person  to  serx'c  in  that  capacitw 
In  1668,  the  selectmen  anil  othei"  inhabitants  of  Newbur\' 
presented  a  petition  to  the  court  at  Salem,  asking  that  "  Cap- 


BLUE    ANCHOR     TAVERN  177 

tain  Paul  White  be  licensed  to  sell  wine  out  of  dores  by 
retaile  .  .  .  until  some  man  be  licensed  to  keep  ordinary  here." 
This  request  was  granted  at  the  June  term  of  the  court,  1668. 

Sept.  28,  1669,  the  town  of  Newbury  being  presented  for 
want  of  an  ordinary  to  entertain  travellers,  the  court  enjoined 
them  to  provide  one  against  the  next  court  at  Ipswich  upon 
the  penalty  of  a  fine  of  ^5. 

Captain  Paul  Wliite,  authorized  by  the  court  "  to  sell  wine 
out  of  dores  by  retaile,"  seems  to  have  carried  on  an  exten- 
sive business.  He  was  an  active  and  enterprising  merchant 
and  wholesale  dealer  in  foreign  and  domestic  lic|uors.  He 
had  been  engaged  in  trade  for  some  years  at  Pemaquid,  now 
Bristol,  Me.,  and  came  to  Newbury  in  1653.  He  bought  of 
Edmund  Greenleaf,  Aug.  25,  1653,  a  dwelling-house  and  one 
acre  of  land  with  a  still-house  and  the  fixtures  connected 
therewith,  bounded  by  the  street  on  the  north  and  east,  by 
land  of  Stephen  Swett  on  the  south,  and  land  of  Tristram 
Coffin,  Jr.,  on  the  west  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  i,  page  143 
(402).  In  1655,  the  town  of  Newbury  granted  him  "a 
parcell  of  land  not  exceeding  half  an  acre,  about  Watts  his 
cellar,  for  to  make  a  dock,  a  wharf,  and  a  warehouse."  He 
evidently  carried  on  the  business  of  distilling  domestic  liquors 
for  twenty-five  years  or  more.  As  late  as  March  5,  1677, 
he  petitioned  the  town  "  for  about  a  rod  of  land  at  the  hang- 
ing of  the  hill  before  his  still  house  on  the  street."  His  wife, 
Bridget  White,  died  Dec.  11,  1664.  He  married,  March  14, 
1665,  for  his  second  wife,  Mrs.  i\nn  Jones,  a  widow,  who  had 
an  only  child,  Mary. 

At  the  March  term  of  the  court  held  at  Ipswich,  in  1670, 
"Hugh  March  was  licensed  to  keep  an  ordinary  at  Newbury 
and  to  draw  wine."  At  the  December  term  of  the  court 
held  at  Salem  the  same  year  "  Capt.  Paul  White  had  his 
license  renewed  to  sell  strong  waters,  &c.,  unless  the  present 
public  ordinary  keeper  doe  sell  wine  at  the  rate  which  the 
law  allows  of." 

April  17,  1674,  Captain  Paul  White,  of  Newbury,  and  wife 
Ann,  on  account  of  a  contract  of  marriage  between  Thomas 
W'oodbridge,   of  Newbury,  gent.,  and  Mary,  the  daughter  of 


178  OULD    NEWBURY 

said  Anil,  fonnall}'  consummated,  conveyed  to  said  Thomas 
and  Mai"\',  and  after  them  to  Paul  \\  oodbridge,  son  of  the 
said  Thomas  and  Mary,  the  dwelling-house  in  which  Thomas 
then  ]i\ed.  and  the  lot  of  land  (three-quarters  of  an  acre)  on 
wliich  the  house  stood,  "bounded  betwixt  ye  land  of  ye  said 
Paul  White  on  )e  north,  the  highway  on  }'e  east,  and  ye  land 
of  Hugh  March  &  now  in  his  ]:)ossession  on  ye  south  and  on 
ye  west"  (P^ssex  Registr}-  for  Deeds,  book  10,  page  95). 

h'eb.  26,  1677,  Captain  White  conveyed  to  Thomas  Wood- 
bridge,  for  life,  and  then  to  Paul  and  Thomas,  sons  of  the 
said  Thomas  Woodbridge,  and  Mary,  "  my  daughter  in  law," 
wife  of  the  first-mentioned  'Phomas  Woodbridge,  "  the  ware- 
houses, dock,  wharf,  and  land,  being  the  \  acre  of  land  at 
Watts  his  cellar  granted  to  the  said  Paul  White  by  the  town 
of  Newbury  April  25,  1655,  and  which  was  laid  out  May  7, 
1656"  (Plssex  Deeds,  book  10,  page  95).  Captain  Paul 
White  died  July  20,  1679,  aged  eighty-nine. 

At  this  time  Hugh  March  was  greatly  disturbed  by  domes- 
tic troubles.  His  wife  Judith  died  Dec.  14,  1675  ;  and  he 
married.  May  29,  1676,  Mrs.  Dorcas  Blackleach.  She  died 
Nov.  22,  1683.  P^or  his  third  wife,  Hugh  March  married 
Sarah  Healey  Dec.  3,  1685.  His  children  by  the  first  mar- 
riage were  :  — 

George,  l)orn  in  1646. 

Judith,  born  Jan.  3.  1653. 

Hugh,  born  Nov.  3,  1656. 

John,  born  June  10,  1658. 

James,  born  Jan.  i  i.  1664. 

Dorcas  Bowman,  daughter  of  Nathaniel  Bowman,  then 
living  in  Connecticut,  married  Benoni  Hlackleach.  Plaving 
been  convicted  of  some  offence,  for  which  he  was  liable  to 
severe  punishment,  Ik'uoni  Blackleach  suddcnl}'  tlisappeared, 
and  was  afterward  reported  to  ba\c  dii'd  in  the  South,  where 
he  was  tempoi'aril}'  residing.  Mrs.  J^lackleach  tlu'u  marrietl 
Hugh  March.  Two  )'ears  later,  Hugh  March,  with  his  sons 
Hugh  and  John  and  neighbors  Thomas  Woodbridge  and  John 
Taylor,  filed  affidax'its  in  the  (leneral  Court,  stating  that 
]-5enoni  Hlackk-ach  was  not  dead,  but  in    X'irvinia   at    the  lime 


BLUE    ANCHOR     TAVERN  179 

of  this  second  marriage,  and  that  Dorcas  Blackleach  knew  of 
this  fact,  and  unlawfully  concealed  it.  Mrs.  March  met  these 
accusations  by  a  general  denial,  and  attributed  the  circulation 
of  these  scandalous  reports  to  the  malice  and  ill-will  of  the 
children  of  Hugh  March.  The  affidavits  and  the  reply  of 
Mrs.  March,  numbering  nine  in  all,  are  on  file  at  the  office 
of  the  clerk  of  the  Supreme  Court  in  Pemberton  Square, 
Boston.  The  decision  of  the  General  Court  will  be  found 
under  date  of  Oct.  7,  1678,  in  volume  5,  page  205,  of  the 
Massachusetts   Colony  Records.      It  reads  as  follows:  — 

In  the  case  now  in  Court,  touching  Hugh  March  «S:  Dorcas,  his  wife, 
the  Court,  upon  what  they  have  heard  alleadged  by  them  both  in  the 
case  and  duly  considered  thereof,  doe  judge  that  the  sajd  March  ought 
to  take  the  sajd  Dorcas  &  retayne  hir  as  a  wife,  and  to  observe  &  fullhll 
the  marriage  Covenant  according  to  his  engagement. 

Evidently,  this  decision  was  not  satisfactory  to  Hugh 
March.  Aug.  15,  1678,  he  gave  to  Simon  Lynde,  of  Bos- 
ton, merchant,  a  mortgage  deed  "  of  his  homestead,  con- 
taining four  acres  of  land  or  upwards,  with  all  the  housing 
both  new  &  old,  barns,  stables,  shop,  edifices  &  buildings, 
whatsoever  upon  the  same  or  any  part  thereof  erected,  scit- 
uate,  lyeing  and  being  within  the  towne  of  Newbury  afore- 
said, neare  the  meeting  house  there,  and  is  butted  &  bounded 
with  the  Streete  or  Highway  easterl}-,  with  the  land  of  M'' 
Thomas  Woodbridge  &  Mr.  Joseph  Hills  northerly,  with  the 
land  of  Anthony  Morse  and  John  Webster  southerly,  with 
the  land  of  Robert  Long  westerly,  .  .  .  conditioned  to  pay 
the  grantee  at  or  in  his  dwelling  house  in  Boston  ;^iio 
on    Aug.   16,  1679"  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  4,  page  189). 

Jan.  31,  1679,  Hugh  March  conveyed  to  his  son  John 
March,  then  not  quite  twenty-one  years  of  age,  the  following 
described  real  estate  and  personal  property  :  — 

My  now  dwelHng  house  in  Newbury,  with  the  land  l}-eing  &  appteine- 
ing  thereunto,  marsh  in  Plum  Island,  also  in  the  sd  house  six  beds, 
with  the  furniture  to  them,  with  all  the  brass  and  pewter  as  it  is 
allredy  devided  &  allredy  allotted  to  him.  with  the  furnace,  brewing 
vessells.  and  all  other  utensells  whatsoever  belonging  to  housekeeping. 


i»o  OULD   NEWBURY 

excepting  &  reserving  to  myselfe,  &  owne  use  and  ppriatv  dureing  mv 
naturall  life,  the  old  parlour  witli  the  chamber  over  it,  as  also  that  pcell 
of  ground  lyeing  to  the  street,  before  the  old  house  &  betweene  the 
shop  and  the  new  house,  intirely  for  my  use,  as  also  for  free  liberty 
to  make  use  of  the  midell  roome  as  I  shall  have  occasion,  for  my 
owne  necessary  imploym'\  as  also  lil)erty  to  make  use  of  the  well,  what 
I  shall  have  occasion  for  with  ]il)erty  of  Ingress  &  egress  &  regress 
thereunto,  as  also  1  reserve  liberty  to  dispose  off  one  of  the  six  beds 
.  .  .  and  lastly  I  reserve  to  my  own  use  &  propriaty  a  pcell  of  y^ 
land  l)eliind  the  barne,  fronting  to  the  street  betwixt  a  stake  set  up  for 
the  determination  of  the  land  of  Hugh  Alarcli,  Jun'',  and  another  stake 
now  sett  up  to  determine  the  bound  of  the  land  sould  to  John  March, 
conteineing  in  breth  seaventy  two  foote  or  therabouts  betwixt  the  sayd 
stake,  and  of  that  bredth  running  back  into  the  lot  one  hundred  >S: 
eighteen  foote  in  length  (Ipswich    Deeds,  book  4.    page  309). 

Hugh  March,  having  divested  himself  of  all  his  real  estate, 
with  the  exception  of  a  small  part  specially  reserved  for  his 
own  use,  was  temporarily  disqualified  from  serving  as  inn- 
keeper. 

At  the  court  held  at  Ipswich  "March  30,  1680,  John 
March  was  licensed  to  keepe  ordinary  at  Newbur}'  for  a  )-ear, 
also  licensed  to  draw  wine  &  liquors  for  a  }'eare."  This 
license  was  renewed  in  March,  1681.  In  the  records  of  the 
court  held  at  Salem  in  June,  1680,  is  the  following  memo- 
randum :  — 

Mrs  White  of  Newbery  have  liscence  granted  to  sell  bv  retaile  wine 
&  liquors,  as  formerly  was  granted  to  her  late  husband  in  his  life  time. 
Upon  further  consideration  and  Hugh  March  iS:  his  son  John  moveing 
the  court  that  shee  might  have  rather  liscence  to  keepe  a  pul)licke  house 
of  entertainment  or  ordinarye.  t^  to  draw  wine  iS:  liipior.  which  the  court 
grants  her  liscence  to  doe,  etc. 

Ever}'  )ear  for  twenty  years  the  license  granted  Mrs.  Ann 
White  was  annually  renewed. 

In  1682,  John  March,  with  the  approval  of  the  selectmen  of 
iSevvbin"y,  petitioned  fnr  license  to  keep  ordinarN'  tliere  ;  "  hut 
the  Comt  learning  that  he  has  rcmoxx'il  from  the  place  wlu-re 
he  first  li\ed  when  his  license  was  granted.  &  Hugh  March 
comi)]aining  that  it  will  he  a  damage  to  him  to  grant  the 
license,  John  is  licensed  to  sell  what  stock  he  has  on  hand 
only." 


BLUE    ANCHOR     TAVERN 


i8i 


It  is  evident  from  this  decision,  and  from  subsequent  pro- 
ceedings relating  to  the  petition  of  John  March,  that  he  had,  in 
consequence  of  some  disagreement  or  misunderstanding  with 
his  father,  removed  from  the  old  tavern,  and  desired  to  set  up  a 
rival  establishment  elsewhere.  He  was  not  disposed  to  accept 
this  decision  as  final,  and  made  strenuous  efforts  to  reverse 
the  decree.  Many  of  the  prominent  citizens  of  Newbury 
favored  his  cause,  and  signed  the  following  petition  :  * — 

To  }•'■  honoured  Court,  hild  at  Ipswitch  y'^'  2S'i\  March,  1682,  wheras 
the  Selectmen  of  y^'  towne  of  Newbury  have,  as  wee  vnderstand.  upon 
serious  Consideration :  of  y''  Convenecy  of  the  place  y'  John :  march 
would  sett  upon  keepinge  of  y*"  ordinery  and  y''  sutteblenes  of  y^'  person  : 
for  yf  end  hath  given  vnder  thayer  hands  thayer  approbation  of  y'^'  thinge 
acordinge  to  Law;  yett  vnderstandinge  y'  there  is  some  obstruction:  ye 
thinge  beinge  not  yett  granted  as  wee  vnderstand,  wee  whose  Names 
are  vnderwrighten  doe  humbly  request  y'  your  honours  would  bee 
plesed  to  grant  y"^'  said  John :  march  a  license  for  his  keepinge  of  y"' 
ordinary,  Considiringe  not  only  the  Conveincy  but  the  nesesity  of  y'" 
towne  of  Newbury  ||  and  Naighboring  towne  ||  is  in,  of  havinge  an  ordi- 
nery in  y*"  place  y*  John  march  is  now  in,  in  regard  :  of  shipinge  & 
other  ocasione  of  much  busnis  neare  y'  place,  so  shall  wee  bee  obliged 
to  pray  for  your  prospirity  &  remaine  yours  humbell  Sarvants. 

March  31^'  1682. 


Richard  Dole 
Samvell  Plumer 
Silvan  us  Plumer 
Ephraim  Plumer 
RicHD  Dole  Jur 
Joseph  Plumer 
John  Knight 
Thomas  Hale 
georg  litple 
John  Atkinson 
Anthony  Sumerby 
Stephen  Grenlefe  Sen 


Daniel  Lunt 
Harry  Lunt 

WiLLM    NOVES 

Joshua  Moss 
Thomas  Noyes 
James  Smith 
Benjamin  Rolfe 
John  Badger 
John  Rally 
Caleb  Moody 
Tno  Dole 


Stephen    Grenlee   iuner 
Joseph  Mayo 
Jonathan  woodman 
Peter  god  ffree 
Edmond  Marshall 
Benja  :   LOWLE 
John  davice 
Edward  richison  senior 
Joshua  Richardson  : 
Wm:  Chandler 
AouiLA  Chase. 


In  answer  to  this  petition  the  court  at  the  September 
term  granted  to  John  March  a  license  "  to  keep  an  ordinary 
and  draw  wine  and  liquors,"  although  Hugh  March  appears 
to  have  remonstrated  with  considerable  force  and  vigor,  as 
will  be  seen  by  the  following  paper,  duly  signed,  now  on  file 
in  the  court  house  at  Salem  (book  38,  leaf  79)  :  — 


*  Court  Files,  book  jS,  leaf  7S. 


i82  OULD   NEWBURY 

To  the  lionderd  County  Court  sitting  at  Ipswich  this  26  of  Septooml:)er 
1682 

The  ])etition  of  Hugh  March  of  Newbury  humbly  showeth,  That, 
whereas  the  lowne  of  Newbury  being  destitute  of  an  ordinary  for  neer 
two  yeres,  being  fined  twise,  and  hkely  to  be  fined  the  3"'  time,  and  could 
find  no  man  that  would  undcrtack  it,  diyers  of  the  most  considerable 
men  of  the  towne  applyed  themselyes  to  mee  to  keepe  the  ordinary,  at 
which  time  i  had  no  need  of  it  or  inclination  to  it.  being  well  satKd  upon 
a  farme  of  my  owne  which  was  suffitiant  to  maintaine  me;  but  by  the 
ofton  porsuasions  and  solicitations  of  those  men  I  was  wiling,  proyided 
I  might  have  the  free  consent  of  the  towne  and  the  aprobation  of  the 
Court,  which  1  had  freely  and  fully  in  a  publick  towne  meting,  by  way 
of  yoate  and  by  this  courts  free  exceptacion,  which  moved  mee  to  pur- 
chase at  a  deare  rate  that  place  which  was  the  antient  place  of  an  ordi- 
nary, wch  being  out  of  repaire  caused  me  to  disburse  great  sums  of 
mooney  in  repairing  the  ould  and  building  new  to  fit  it  for  the  townes 
and  cuntrys  benifit.  which  caused  me  to  sell  one  good  farme  and  wholy 
to  leaye  my  farm  that  I  liyed  uppone. 

The  ordinary  that  I  bought,  tho  old  and  out  of  repayer.  cost  me  120"' 
besids  to  the  valeu  of  more  than  400"'  I  layd  out  in  building  barn,  stable, 
and  housing,  with  bedding.  &c..  to  fite  myselfe  for  giving  piublick  con- 
veniant  entertainment  for  the  country  and  towne. 

This  ordinary  was  by  me  kept  about  12  yeres,  and  no  man  had  just 
reason  to  complaine  for  want  of  anything  that  was  conveniant.  nor  did  yt 
ever  I  heard.  Besides  the  law  saith,  page  82,  that  no  man  shall  lose  his 
licance  before  he  be  convicted  of  some  broache  of  law.  Avhich  i  never 
was  : 

Altho  I  put  the  ordinary  out  of  my  hands  for  a  time,  yet  it  was  for 
my  lively  hood  and  that  I  might  live  by  it  as  an  ordinary. 

It  hath  bene  the  uisiall  custom  of  courts  and  townes  to  put  antiant 
persons  into  such  places  and  calings  to  bee  a  help  to  them,  rather  than 
to  turne  them  out  after  all  thayr  cost  to  y''  undoing  and  that  because 
the  present  selectmen  do  not  give  y"^  approbation  under  thayre  hands. 
I  had  not  only  the  aprobation  of  the  selectmen,  but  of  the  towne  also, 
and  of  this  hondred  court  for  12  yeares  together,  and  tharfor  hope  vt 
this  hondred  court  will  consider  my  case,  and  not  to  suffer  any  man  to 
be  undon  by  the  by  and  selfe  ends  of  any  selectmen  ;  for.  if  so.  the 
country  will  scarsly  ever  be  well  provided  for  with  an  ordinary  to  ct)n- 
tenl.  wch  will  be  a  disgrace  to  the  country  in  other  places  in  the  wiuukl, 
for  who  will  lay  out  such  an  estate  to  keepe  an  ordinary  to  be  at  the 
mercy  of  the  next  new  selectman  whether  he  sliall  hould  it  above  one 
yeare  or  no  ? 

This  hondred  court  hauing  in  some  measure  understood  how  i  com- 
mitted my  estate  to   my  sone,  and   the   wav  that  he   haue   had   to  deprife 


BLUE    ANCHOR     TAl'ERN  183 

mee  of  my  licanse  and  likewise  of  my  estate,  wch  i  am  depely  soncalale 
of  my  afflicttion,  being  further  agrivated  by  his  execution  granted  from 
the  hondred  court  of  asistence,  wch  I  presume  your  honors  are  not  un- 
sonsable  of  :  he  hauing  little  mercy  on  his  father,  I  hope  you,  the 
fathers  of  the  land,  will  haufe  more  mercy  upon  mee. 

In  granting  yr  poore  petioner  his  licence  for  the  ordinary  as  formerly, 
wch  (under  correctionj  I  conceive  is  but  a  rationall  request,  either  to  my 
self  or  som  other  person  yt  may  be  put  in,  so  that  i  may  haue  the  bonifit 
of  that  my  estate  in  that  way  as  formerly,  and  in  so  doing  you  shall 
oblidg  your  humble  petioner,  to  pray. 

Hugh  March. 

Mrs.  Robert  C.  Cheney,  of  Ring's  Island,  Salisbury,  Mass., 
a  descendant  of  Judith  March,  only  daughter  of  Hugh  March, 
Sr.,  has  in  her  possession  a  copy  of  the  above  petition,  evi- 
dently in  the  handwriting  of  Hugh  March,  with  deeds  and 
other  papers  relating  to  the  settlement  of  the  estate  of 
Colonel  John   March. 

It  is  evident  from  the  preceding  statement  addressed  to 
the  court  sitting  at  Ipswich,  by  Hugh  March,  that  he  was 
anxious  to  resume  his  occupation  as  innkeeper  ;  and  it  also 
appears  that  "  the  hondred  court  "  was  not  inclined  to  grant 
his  request.  In  this  emergency  Hugh  March  applied  to  the 
General  Court,  assembled  in  Boston,  for  aid  and  assistance 
in  procuring  the  desired  license.  In  the  court  files  at  Salem 
is  the  following  interesting  order  relating  to  this  subject  :  — 

Att  A  Generall  Court  at  Boston,  11"^  October,  1682. 

An  Answe""  to  the  peticon  of  Hugh  March.  The  Court  being  Credi- 
bly Informed  that  the  petitioner  hath  been  &  is  like  to  be  a  great  Sufferer 
by  being  disappointed  of  keeping  a  house  of  publick  entertainement,  he 
having  been  encouraged  thereto  by  the  Towne  of  Newbery  tS:  others 
conseyned,  and  therefore  layd  out  a  Considerable  estate  to  titt  &  fur- 
nish himself  for  that  Imploy,  and  doe  therefore  comend  it  to  the  Se- 
lectmen of  that  Towne  and  the  court  of  that  County  to  consider  of  his 
condition  and  toe  seis  him  therein,  and  that  he  may  againe  be  intrusted 
in  his  former  imploymt  in  due  time.  That  this  is  A  true  copie  taken 
out  of  the   Court   Records. 

Ed  wo  Rawsox,  Secret. 

The  court  at  Salem  the  28:  9:  82  prsing  the  above  order,  &  alsoe 
the  returne  from  the  Selectmen  of  newberj-,  doe  not  se  cause  to  grant 
the  sd  Hugh  marches  desire  in  granting  him  liscence. 

Attest  HiLLiARD  Veren,  Clr. 


184  OULD   XEIVBURY 

At  the  April  term  of  the  court  held  at  Ipswich  in  1683 
"  Hugh  March  was  licensed  to  keepe  a  house  of  publick 
entertainment  in  Newbury  for  a  yeare."  His  wife,  Dorcas 
(Blackleach)  March,  died  Nov.  22,  1683  ;  and  he  was  again 
at  liberty  to  hold  property  in  his  own  name  without  fear  of 
molestation.  His  license  as  innkeeper  was  renewed  annually 
during  the  remainder  of  his  life. 

Dec.  5,  1693,  he  conveyed  by  deed  to  his  son  John  March, 
of  Salisbury,  "  houses,  lands,  meadows,  fencing,  goods,  chat- 
tels, leases,  debts,  bills,  bonds,  plate,  jewels,  and  rings ; 
household  stuff,  apparrell,  utensils,  brass,  pewter,  and  iron  ; 
bedding  and  all  other  my  substance  whatsoever "  ;  the  said 
John  March  to  j^ay  to  Sarah  March,  wnfe  of  Hugh  March, 
a  certain  sum  annually,  "and  allow  her  the  use  of  my  old 
parlor  and  the  chamber  over  it  within  my  house  in  Newbury, 
and  commonly  called  by  that  name,  and  the  use  of  the  well 
for  necessary  uses  during  her  widowhood,  .  .  .  with  liberty  of 
making  use  of  the  middle  room  for  household  occasions." 
By  the  terms  of  this  deed  John  March  is  also  required  to  pay 
over  to  the  children  and  grandchildren  of  Hugh  March  cer- 
tain specified  sums  of  money  (Esse.x  Registry  of  Deeds, 
book    10,  page   52). 

Captain  John  March,  at  the  date  of  the  above  conveyance, 
was  living  in  Salisbury,  where  he  owned  a  large  farm.  He 
subsequently  purchased  several  tracts  of  land  in  Newbury, 
and  among  them  a  farm  of  nearly  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres 
at  Birchen  Meadow,  so  called.  The  boundaries  of  his  estate 
in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  old  tavern  are  somewhat 
vague  and  uncertain.  It  is  probable,  however,  that  the 
westerl}'  limit  extended  to,  and  perhajjs  included,  the  high 
land  that   is  known  as   March's  hill. 

Oct.  25,  1687,  during  the  administration  of  .Sir  lulmund 
Andros,  Captain  John  March  was  granted  the  right  to  main- 
tain a  ferrv  o\er  the  Men"imack  l\i\er  "from  warehouse 
point,  so  called,  in  the  town  of  Xewburx",  to  King's  Island  in 
the  town  of  SalisbuiN."  l*"or  the  details  of  the  prolonged  con- 
tro\ers)-  to  which  this  grant  ga\e  rise  the  reader  is  referred 
to  the   sketch,   on   ])ages   53    to   80,   inclusi\e.   entitletl   "The 


BL  UE    A  A  'CHOK     TA  I  '£  A' A ' 


'5 


Ferry  at  Carr's  Island."  Some  arrangement  was  evidently 
made  with  Captain  Edward  Sargent,  who  was  a  licensed  inn- 
keeper, to  take  charge  of  the  newly  established  ferry.  As 
agent  or  lessee,  it  was  under  his  care  and  control  for  many 
years. 

July  15,  1690,  John  March  was  appointed  captain,  and 
ordered  to  enlist  a  company  for  the  Canada  expedition.  In 
1697,  with  the  rank  of  Major,  he  had  command  of  the  forces 
eng:as:ed  in  the  attack  on  the  Indians  at  Damaris  cove,  on 
the  coast  of  Maine.  In  1703,  he  petitioned  the  General 
Court  to  grant  him  compensation  for  losses  sustained  in 
the  defence  of  Casco  fort  ;  and  November  20,  of  the  same 
year,  "  the  General  Court  granted  to  Captain  John  March 
fifty  pounds  in  consideration  of  the  brave  defence  of  his 
majesty's  fort  at  Casco  Bay,  when  lately  attacked  by  the 
French  and  Indian  enemy,  and  of  the  wounds  he  then 
received." 

A  few  years  previously,  April  1 7,  1 700,  Captain  John 
March  had  given  a  mortgage  deed  to  John  W'ainwright,  of 
Ipswich,  of  the  following  described  property,  namely,  "  four 
acres  of  land,  bounded  easterly  by  the  street,  northerly  by  the 
land  of  George  March,  westerly  and  southerly  by  land  of 
James  Coffin,  with  house  and  outhouses  conveyed  to  me  by 
my  father,  Hugh  March,  senior,  Dec.  5,  1693  "  (Essex  Deeds, 
book  14,  page  16).  This  mortgage  was  discharged  May  9, 
1704  (book  16,  page  16). 

During  this  year  or  the  year  following  he  removed  to 
Falmouth,  now  Portland,  Me.  He  was  evidently  engaged  in 
military  service,  and  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  lieutenant- 
colonel.  July  23,  1705,  he  sold  to  the  town  of  Newbury  the 
ferry  over  the  Merrimack  River,  granted  to  him  during  the 
administration  of  Sir  Edmund  Andros,  described  as  follows 
(Essex   Deeds,   book    19,   page  48)  :  — 

Lt.  Col.  John  March  of  Newbury,  now  resident  in  Falmouth,  York 
County,  gent™  for  ^240,  conveys  to  Lt.-Col"  Thomas  Noyes,  Esq.,  Maj'' 
Dan"  Davison,  Lt.  Joseph  Little,  M"^  William  Titcomb,  all  of  Newbury, 
a  committee  for  the  town  of  Newbury,  all  the  interest  and  right,  &c., 
which    I    now   have   or    mav   have    "  in   or  to   the   ferry  comonlv  called 


l86  OULD    XEWBURY 

Marches  ferry,  over  Merrimack  River,  near  the  ph\ce  where  Cap'  Ed- 
ward Serjeant  now  Dwell-s  in  Xewbury  afores'',  which  ferry  was  first 
granted  by  Sir  Edmond  Andross  &  Councill  unto  y  Said  March  at  a 
councill  held  at  y''  Councill  Chamber  in  Boston  on  Tuesday  y'  Twenty 
fifth  day  of  octob'  16.S7.  as  by  said  act  of  Councill  may  appear.  »!\:  con- 
firmed &  setled  vpon  .Said  March  bv  v*'  Justices  of  y'  County  of  Essex 
afore.s''  \-''  14"'  of  Novemb'.  1687,  &  again  Confirmed  unto  him  at  a  Gen- 
erall  Sessions  of  s"  Peace  holden  at  Ipswich  for  the  County  of  Essex, 
march  2.S"i  i  704.  &  was  Late  in  y  Tenure  &  occupation  of  Cap'  Edw' 
Serjeant  afores''.""  except  the  gratuitous  right  of  ferriage  of  the  grantor 
and  his  perticular  family  &   Horses  &   Cattle  over  .s''  ferry  for  22  years. 

After  his  return  to  Xewbury  Colonel  March  was  busy 
and  acti\'e  in  public  affairs.  His  will,  dated  April  18,  1707, 
and  proved  Aug.  25,  171 2,  gives  to  his  eldest  son,  John,  two 
and  one-half  shares,  to  son  Hugh  one  and  three-quarters 
shares,  daughter  Abigail  one  share,  and  daughter  Elizabeth 
one  share  of  all  his  real  and  personal  estate.  In  the  in- 
ventor}' of  his  estate,  "his  Great  Dwelling  House,  orchard, 
outhousing,  with  abt  35  acres  adjacent  the  homestead,"  are 
valued  at  ^350;  and  "the  dwelling  house  y'  Ca}it.  Henry 
L)'on  li\"es  in,  outhousing,  with  abt  3  acres  adjacent  of  y 
homestead,"  are  valued  at   ^^200. 

Captain  Henry  Lyon  was  licensed  as  an  innholder  for  the 
years  1712  and  1713,  and  evidently  had  charge  of  the  old 
tavern  when  the  will  of  Colonel  John  March  was  proved. 
From  the  records  of  the  Court  of  (ieneral  Sessions,  held  at 
Salem  March  16,   171  3-4,  it  appears  that, 

Capt.  Henry  Lyon  having  left  Xewbury  >S;  y  house  being  y  .\nchor 
Tavern,  which  he  had  a  lycense  for.  &  y  justices  X:  selectmen  of  Xew- 
bury setting  forth  to  this  court  that  it  is  needfull  that  another  person  be 
permitted  to  keep  y''  s''  house  as  an  innholder.  lK:  having  given  their  ap- 
probation that  M"  John  Clarke  might  be  Lycensed  to  keep  y  s''  house. 
This  Court  doe  Lycense  y  s''  John  Clarke  to  be  an  Inn  holder  in  said 
house  till  June  Court  next,  he  making  good  .s''  Capt.  Lyons  excise  to  y 
province. 

John  Clarke  probabh'  continued  to  serve  as  innholder  imtil 
171  5.  Some  time  chu"ing  that  year  the  property  passed  into 
the  hands  of  Jolui  Wainwright,  but  the  (\\iyi(\  transferring  the 
title  does  not  appeal'  to  have  been  recordeil. 


BLUE    AXCHOR     TAVERN  187 

At  all  events,  John  Wainwright,  late  of  Ipswich,  now  of 
Boston,  merchant,  sold  to  Samuel  Sawyer,  of  Newbur}-,  inn- 
holder,  Dec.  21,  1 7 1  5,  for  £.  1 60, 

Two  and  three  quarter  acres  of  land,  commonly  known  as  the  Blue 
Anchor  Tavern,  with  the  Mansion  house,  barn  and  stables,  bounded 
south  easterly  partly  by  land  now  belonging  to  John  Woodbridge  and 
John  March  and  partly  by  land  belonging  to  James  Coffin,  and  westerly 
and  northwesterly  by  y^'  land  of  y^'  heirs  of  Insigne  Henry  Lunt.  late  of 
Newbury,  deceased,  northerly  by  y  land  of  Benjamin  .Morse,  tercius. 
and  north  easterly  by  y  street  or  country  road  (book  28.  page  78). 

Samuel  Sawyer  was  a  licensed  innholder  from  1693  to 
1 716,  and  very  likely  rented  and  occupied  the  "  Blue  Anchor 
Tavern  "  while  Colonel  John  March  was  actively  engaged  in 
the  service  of  the  colony  on  the  eastern  frontier.* 

March  3,  171  5-6,  Samuel  Sawyer  sold  to  his  son  Benjamin 
"one  mansion  or  dwelling  house  with  2f  acres  of  land  in 
Newbury,  known  by  the  name  of  The  Blew  Anchor  Tavern," 
bounded  and  described  substantially  as  in  the  deed  above 
quoted  (book  28,  page  164). 

Oct.  2,  1 718,  Benjamin  Sawyer,  of  Newbury,  weaver,  for 
^155,  conveyed  to  John  March,  of  Salisbury,  "house  and 
25  acres  of  land  in  Newbury  afores"^,  cofnonly  known  by  y^ 
name  of  y  Blew  Anchor  Tavern,  together  with  all  y^'  houses, 
outhouses,  Barns,  Buildings,  stables,  orchards.  Gardens,  &c.,"' 
bounded  and  described  substantially  as  in  the  deed  from  John 
Wainwright  to  Samuel  Sawyer  (book  ^6,  page  71). 

The    above-named    "John    March    of    Salisbury"   was   the 

*  In  an  old  play,  entered  at  Stationers'  Hall,  London,  by  William  Apsley,  Sept.  4,  1605,  in 
which  Shakspere  is  said  to  have  acted,  one  of  the  characters  in  the  first  scene  of  the  third  act 
says  :  — 

"  Welcome,  good  Captaine  Seagul  and  worthy  gentlemen.  If  you  will  meet  my  friend  here 
and  niee,  at  the  Blewe  Anchor  Tavenie,  by  Billingsgate,  this  e\ening,  wee  will  there  drinke  to  our 
happy  voyage,  be  merry,  and  take  boate  to  our  ship  with  all  expedition." 

The  second  scetie  opens  "  In  the  Blewe  Anchor  Tavenie,"  where  "Seagull,  Spendall,  and 
Scapethrift "  meet,  and  over  their  cups  tell  wonderful  stories  of  adventure  and  conquest  in  lands 
beyond  the  sea. 

-As  early  as  16S5  Boston  had  a  house  of  entertanimeut,  kept  by  George  Monk,  called  the  Blue 
Anchor  Taveni.  It  stood  on  Washington  Street,  near  the  spot  now  occupied  by  Little,  Brown  & 
Co.'s  bookstore.  Dunton,  in  his  letters  from  New  England  (Prince  Society's  Collection,  page  S6), 
says,  "  There  was  no  one  House  in  all  the  Town  more  notad  or  where  a  Man  might  meet  with  better 
accommodation  "  ;  and  Judge  Sewall  states,  in  his  diary,  that  the  Governor  and  Council  dined  there, 
on  se\eral  memorable  occasions. 


i88  OULD    NEWBURY 

eldest  son  of  Colonel  John  March,  deceased.  He  was 
licensed  as  an  innholder  of  Xewbur)'  for  several  years  ;  but 
Feb.  I,  1 720-1,  he  conveyed  to  I^enjamin  Morse,  by  two 
separate  deeds,  one  acre,  and  one  and  a  half  acres  of  land  ad- 
jacent to  the  old  tavern,  and  September  26,  of  the  same  year, 
he  sold  to  Joseph  March  the  remainder  of  the  land  with  the 
house  thereon  (book  38,  page  128;  book  39,  page  13;  and 
book  39,  page  140). 

June  6,  1722,  Joseph  March,  of  Salisbur)-,  sold  to  Samuel 
Seddon,  of  Salisbury  (the  latter  cordwainer,  alias  innholder), 
a  dwelling-house  and  one-quarter  acre  of  land  "  in  the  posses- 
sit)n  of  John  March,  Jr.,  and  bought  of  the  said  John  March, 
Jr."  (book  40,  page  212). 

Dec.  30,  1726,  Samuel  Seddon,  then  of  Ham})ton.  X.  H., 
gave  a  quitclaim  deed  of  the  above-described  property  to 
Joseph  March  (book  65,  page  29). 

Feb.  II,  1726-7,  Joseph  March  sold  to  Philip  Fowler 
one-quarter  of  an  acre  of  land,  with  dwelling-house  thereon, 
"  bounded  easterly  by  the  highwa)',  on  the  south  jxartl}'  by 
land  of  Isaac  Noyes,  deceased,  and  partly  by  land  of  James 
Coffin,  on  the  West  and  north  by  land  of  Benjamin  Morse  " 
(book  90,  page  5). 

Philip  Prowler  remained  in  possession  of  the  old  ta\ern, 
with  one-quarter  of  an  acre  of  land  under  and  adj inning  the 
same,  until  Oct.  3,  1755.  when  he  sold  it  to  the  Rev.  Jona- 
than Parsons,  then  pastor  of  the  i-'irst  Presbyterian  Church 
in  Newburyport,  who  had  previously  bought  of  John  Adams, 
son-in-law  of  ]-}enjamin  Morse,  four  acres  of  land,  with  dwell- 
ing-house thereon,  in  that  immediate  \-icinit)'  (book  103.  page 
46,  and  book  88,  i)age  lOO). 

Soon  after  the  conveyance  of  this  propert}-  to  the  Re\-. 
Mr.  Parsons  the  tavern  was  taken  down,  and  a  p;)rlion  of  the 
land  under  the  same  was  exchanged,  for  adjoining  land,  with 
Daniel  Clark  who  then  owned  the  next  house  on  the 
southerl)'  side,  now  known  as  the  Ilsley  house  (book  104, 
pages  10  and  11). 


ILSLEY   HOUSE. 


In  1670,  Stephen  Swett,  having  served  as  innholdei"  in  the 
town  of  Newbury  for  ten  or  fifteen  years,  sold  his  estate  on 
the  westerly  side  of  High  Street,  near  the  head  of  Marlbor- 
ough Street,  reserving  a  certain  parcel  of  land  bounded  and 
described  as  follows :  "  In  length  85  rods  ranging  by  the 
fence  of  Tristram  Coffin  and  Anthony  Morse  on  the  south 
side,  and  the  land  in  sale  on  the  north  side  being  nine  rods  ; 
and  three  rod  and  six  foot  in  breadth  at  the  east  end  next  the 
'Street,  and  one  rod  in  breadth  at  the  west  end  "  (Ipswich 
Deeds,  book  3,  page  215). 

On  this  lot  of  land  reserved  by  Stej^hen  Swett  for  his  own 
use  the  old  house,  now  known  as  the  Ilsley  House,  was  built. 
It  was  probably  occupied  by  Stephen  Swett  until  Nov.  16, 
i6gi.  At  that  date  he  sold  to  Hugh  March,  Jr.,  a  lot  of 
land,  bounded  easterly  by  the  highway,  northerly  by  the  land 
of  Hugh  March,  Sr.,  and  scnith westerly  by  land  of  Lieutenant 
Tristram  Cofifin,  also  an  adjoining  lot,  bounded  by  the  land  of 
Tristram  Coffin  southerly,  the  street  easterly,  and  the  land 
above  mentioned  on  the  northwest,  "  together  with  ye  dwell- 
ing-house and  shopp  standing  upon  ye  same  "  (Essex  Deeds, 
book  10,  page  17). 

Jan.  9,  1693-4,  Hugh  March  sold  to  Captain  John  March 
"  the  house  which  I  bought  of  Steven  Swett,  deceased,  and 
about  fifteen  rods  of  land,  bounded  northerly  and  westerly 
by  land  in  possession  of  Capt.  John  March,  formerly  Mr. 
Hugh  March's,  deceased,  southerly  by  land  in  possession  of 
James  Coffin,  easterly  by  the  main  street  or  highway  "  (book 
18,  page  48). 

March  31,  171  3,  Jemima  March  of  Newbury,  administratrix 
of  Colonel  John  March,  late  of  Newbury,  deceased,  and  John 
March  of  Salisbur}-,  Hugh  March  of  Newbur}',  Abigail  March, 


ILSLEY    HOUSE  19  I 

and  Elizabeth  March  of  Newbury,  "  children  and  heirs  of  the 
s''  Col.  John  March,  with  advice  of  Major  Henry  Somerby, 
guardian  of  s''  Abigail  &  Elizabeth,"  sold  and  conveyed  to 
Captain  Henry  Eyon,  of  Newbury,  eighteen  rods  of  land  with 
the  house  thereon,  bounded  and  described  as  follows  :  — 

One  mansion  or  dwelling  house,  together  with  about  18  rods  of  land 
thereunto  adjoining,  being  in  Newbury  and  bounded  50  foot  front  from 
James  Coffin's  fence,  near  his  dwelling  house  in  Newbury,  butting  upon 
ye  street  or  country  road  running  ye  said  50  feet  northwesterly,  thence 
running  westerly,  so  as  to  take  in  one  half  of  ye  well  anglewise  and  one 
foot  more,  in  ye  whole  144  feet,  and  from  said  well  southeasterly  16 
foot  to  ye  said  James  Coffin's  fence,  and  so  running  by  said  fence  till 
it  comes  to  ye  street  or  country  road  easterly. 

March  31,  171  3,  Captain  Henry  Eyon,  of  Newbury,  sold  to 
John  Woodbridge  and  John  March,  both  of  Newbury,  "  the 
house  and  land  in  Newbury  which  he  this  day  bought  of 
Mrs.  Jemima  March,  administratrix  of  the  estate  of  Col.  John 
March,  late  of  Newbury,  deceased,  and  John  March,  Hugh 
March,  Abigail  March,  and  P^lizabeth  March  "  (book  26,  page 

238). 

May  17,  171 5,  Eieutenant  John  March,  of  Newbury, 
sadler,  and  John  W^oodbridge,  of  Newbury,  joiner,  sold  to 
Isaac  Noyes,  of  Newbury,  joiner,  for  ^50,  "  house  and  land 
in  Newbury  bounded  by  James  Coffin  southerly,  by  ye  land 
of  ye  old  tavern,  so  called,  northwesterly,  running  so  as  to 
take  one  half  of  ye  well  and  running  from  ye  well  sixteen  feet 
to  s''  Coffin's  fence  and  by  ye  country  road  easterly  being  55 
feet  in  breadth,  &c."  (book  38,  page  18). 

Isaac  Noyes  died  when  his  son  Enoch  Noyes,  born  in 
I  71  7,  was  only  six  months  old.  His  widow,  Jane  (Somerby), 
married  Daniel  Pearson  for  her  second  husband.  Eeb.  26, 
1738-9,  Enoch  Noyes,  then  about  twenty-one- years  of  age, 
with  his  mother,  Jane  Pearson,  gave  to  Moses  Noyes,  of  New- 
bury, joiner,  for  ^120,  a  deed  of  this  house  and  land,  bounded 
and  described  as  follows  :  "  easterly  on  the  King's  highway 
55  feet,  southerly  on  land  formerly  of  James  Coffin  150  feet, 
westerly  on   land   of   Benjamin    Morse    16  feet,  and  northerly 


192  OULD    XFAVBURY 

on  land  partly  of  said  Alorsc  and  jiartly  on  lantl  of  John 
March  137  feet"  (book  95,  page  192). 

Sept.  29,  1752,  Moses  Noyes,  Jr.,  of  Xc\vbur_\'.  sold  to 
Daniel  Clark,  of  Xewbui'}',  cordwainer,  house,  barn,  and  land 
bounded  and  described  as  follows:  "easterly  on  the  road  55 
feet,  southerly  on  land  of  Kliphalet  Jaques  1  50  feet,  westerly 
on  land  of  Re\".  Jonathan  Parsons  16  feet,  and  northerly 
parti}'  upon  the  land  of  the  said  Mr.  Parsons  and  partly  on 
the  land  now  in  the  possession  of  John  March,  junior,  it 
being  the  same  land  I  bo't  of  Enoch  Noyes  P>b.  26,  1738-9  " 
(book  98,  page  82). 

(^ct.  I,  1765,  Daniel  Clark  sold  to  Nathan  Pierce,  of  New- 
bury, shopkeeper,  for  ^143  (Ss.  S(/.,  about  twenty-nine  and 
one-half  rods  of  land,  with  house  thereon,  bounded  as  follows  : 
"  easterly  on  the  road  62  rods,  southerl)-  on  land  of  l^liphalet 
Jaques  5  rods,  2^  feet,  westerly  on  land  partly  of  the  said 
Jaques  and  partly  of  Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons  5^^  rods,  and 
northerly  on  land  of  said  Parsons  and  by  the  town  house  lot 
4  rods"  (book  116,  page  256). 

June  2,  1772,  Nathan  Pierce,  of  Newbury,  )eoman,  sold 
to  Benjamin  Colman,  of  Newbury,  }-eoman,  for  ^,"200.  house, 
barn,  land,  etc.,  "  bounded  easterly  by  the  countr\-  road, 
northerly  partly  b)'  the  land  belonging  to  the  P'irst  Parish  in 
Newbury,  where  the  Town  House  now  stands,  and  partly  by 
the  Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons  land,  &c."  (book  131,  j^age  46). 

Aug.  19,  1773,  Benjamin  Colman,  yeoman,  sold  to  Dudley 
Colman.  of  Newbury,  gentleman,  for  ^£226  i^s.  4^/..  the 
property  above  described  (book  138,  i^age  126). 

April  29,  1780,  Dudle)-  Colman,  Esc|..  of  Ne\vbur\i)ort, 
sold  to  Nicholas  'Pitcomb,  of  Newburyport,  }-eoman,  the  same 
])remises,  "  together  with  the  mills  and  tools  for  carrying  on 
the  chocolate,  tallow  chandler)',  and  tobaconist  business" 
(book  140,  page  143). 

March  4,  1783,  Nicholas  Titcomb,  of  Xewbuiw  innholder, 
soltl  to  Oliver  Putnam,  of  Xewburxpoi't.  blacksmith,  land  in 
Xewbury  "  bounded  easterl)-  b}-  the  main  countiy  road  si.\ 
r(xls  and  one  half,  southerly  b)-  P^lij^halet  Jac|ues'  land  fixe 
rods  two  feet   and   one  half,  westerl)'   partly  b\-   said  Jaques' 


FLSLEY    HOUSE  193 

land  and  j^artly  by  land  belonging  to  the  heirs  of  the  Rev. 
Jonathan  Parsons,  deceased,  five  rods  and  one  half,  northerly 
partly  by  the  heirs  of  the  aforesaid  Parsons  and  partly  by 
land  belonging  to  the  heirs  of  Benjamin  Morse,  formerly  of 
Newbury,  deceased,  four  rods,  with  all  the  buildings  thereon  " 
(book  140,  page  143). 

In  some  of  the  deeds  recorded  about  this  tmie  Oliver  Put- 
nam is  described  as  a  blacksmith,  and  in  other  deeds  "  scythe- 
maker."  As  early  as  1778  Edward  Harris,  of  Londonderry, 
N.  H.,  cabinet-maker,  sold  to  Oliver  Putnam  and  William 
Parker,  "said  Putnam  being  scythemaker  and  Parker  cabi- 
net maker,"  for  ^500,  about  fourteen  rods  of  land  on 
King  Street,  Newburyport  (now  Federal  Street)  (book  139, 
page  220).  On  this  land  Oliver  Putnam  and  William  Parker 
probably  built  a  dwelling-house  for  their  own  use.  At  all 
events,  on  the  28th  of  February,  1783,  Oliver  Putnam  sold  a 
portion  of  this  land,  with  part  of  a  house  and  barn  on  King 
Street,  to  Nicholas  Titcomb  (book  140,  page  143),  and  a  few 
days  later  received  a  deed  of  the  estate  at  the  head  of  Marl- 
borough Street,  as  above  stated. 

Oliver  Putnam  was  born  in  Danvers,  Feb.  13,  1755.  He 
was  a  descendant  of  John  Putnam,  one  of  the  early  settlers 
of  New  England.  His  intended  marriage  to  Sarah,  daughter 
of  Eleazer  and  Sarah  (Perkins)  Lake,  was  published  in  Tops- 
field,  Mass.,  Nov.  12,  1775.  He  probably  came  to  Newbury- 
port about  this  time.  His  name  appears  in  the  list  of 
enrolled  men  under  the  command  of  Captain  Moses  Nowell, 
stationed  at  Newburyport  from  November,  1775,  to  January, 
1776. 

His  children  were  as  follows  :  — 

Oliver,  born  Nov.  17,  1777:    died  July  11.  1S26. 

Sarah,  born  Aug.  g,  1779. 

Elizabeth,  born  March  6,  1785;    married   Dr.  Hackett. 

Thorndike,  born  in  1787:    died  May  21.  1858. 

Thomas,  born  Jan.  17,  1789. 

Sarah,  born  Nov.  12,  1790. 

Charles,  born  Jan.  28,  1793  ;   died  Oct.  25,  1834. 

Lucy,  born  July  16,  1795  ;    died  July  6,  1839. 

Joshua,  born  July  23,  1798  ;    died  at  sea. 


194  OULD   KiaVBURV 

I-'rom  the  ab(i\c  record  it  a])i)cars  that  ( )H\cr  Putnam,  Jr., 
was  six  years  of  a<!;e  when  his  fatlier  jnnxhased  the  estate  at 
the  head  of  Marlborouij;h  Stieet,  and  opened  a  house  of  ])ubHc 
entertainment  theix-.  \'oun_t;"  I'utnam,  chning"  his  school-days, 
lived  at  home,  attending;'  to  such  duties  about  the  house  in 
his  leisure  hours  as  health  and  strength  would  permit. 

Cofifin,  in  his  History  of  Newbury,  says  that  Mr.  Stephen 
(ierrish  had  his  skull  fractured  and  Mr.  Samuel  Kezer  his 
limbs  injured  by  the  falling'  of  some  rocks  while  stoning  Mr. 
Oliver  Putnam's  well  July  ii,  1786;  and  in  the  month  of 
August  following  Mr.  Abraham  Thurlow,  employed  to  com- 
plete the  repairs,  was  killed  b)'  exjiosure  to  the  impure  air 
confined  in  the  well. 

Nov.  8,  1797,  Oliver  Putnam,  blacksmith,  sold  to  Isaiah 
Ilslc}',  of  Newbury,  joiner,  for  51,030  the  house  and  land 
previously  described,  and  removed  to  Haverhill,  Mass.  (Essex 
Deeds,  book  163,  page  58).  In  October,  1798,  Oliver  Put- 
nam was  admitted  to  membership  in  the  Fire  Club  of  Haver- 
hill ;  and  he  was  also  taxed  in  that  town,  the  same  year,  for  a 
dwelling-house  and  land,  \alued  at  S550  (Chase's  History  of 
Haverhill,  page  429). 

()li\-er  Putnam,  Jr.,  found  em})loyment  with  one  of  the  ex- 
tensive importing  houses  of  Newburyi^ort  as  confidential 
clerk.  He  retained  that  position  for  a  number  of  years, 
and  afterward  made  several  \'oyages  to  South  America  and 
luu-ope.  He  acquired  considerable  wealth,  but  failing  health 
compelled  him  to  abandon  business  ;  and,  after  a  brief  resi- 
dence in  Boston,  Mass.,  he  bought  a  farm  in  Hampstead, 
N.  H.,  to  which  he  remo\-ed.  lie  was  ne\-er  married,  but 
made  a  home  for  his  parents,  his  brother  Thorndike,  and 
himself  on  the  farm.  His  mothei-  died  there  in  181 1,  and 
his  father  in  1818.  He  continued  to  reside  at  Hampstead 
until  his  death,  which  occuired  Jul\-  11,  1826.  when  fort)- 
nine  years  of  age.  In  his  will,  dated  Jul\'  11,  1825,  and 
])ro\'ed  in  the  count)"  of  Suffolk,  Mass.,  Aug.  14,  1826,  is  the 
tollowing   bequest:  — 

The  residue  of  niv  iJrojJLTtv  I  ,i;i\c  and  l)L-(|UL-atli  tor  tlic  cstabli.sli- 
ment    and   .supjiort   of   a    fret-    I'.ni^lisli    .school    in    \c\\  lun'\|)ort.    for   tin.' 


ILSLEY    HOUSE     ■  195 

instruction  of  youtli  wherever  they  may  l^elong.  If.  at  the  final  payment 
of  the  foregoing  legacies,  it  should  amount  to  fifty  thousand  dollars,  the 
executors  will  then  pay  it  over  as  hereafter  provided ;  but,  if  not,  they 
will  retain  it  to  accumulate  until  it  amounts  to  that  sum,  and  then  pay 
it  over  to  trustees  for  that  purpose  to  be  appointed  by  the  selectmen  of 
Newburyport.  After  the  first  appointment  of  trustees,  vacancies  in 
their  board  to  be  filled  by  nomination  from  them,  subject  to  the  ap- 
proval of  the  said  selectmen,  who  besides  are  always  and  at  all  times  to 
have  and  exercise  the  right  of  visitation,  for  the  purpose  of  looking  to 
the  security  of  the  funds,  and  that  the  interest  or  income  of  them  is  ap- 
plied according  to  the  bequest.  In  the  selection  of  trustees,  no  refer- 
ence is  to  be  had  to  their  places  of  residence,  but  only  to  their  qualifica- 
tions for  the  trust.  The  trustees  are  to  invest  the  whole  principal  in 
good  and  sufficient  securities  bearing  interest  or  producing  income  to 
the  satisfaction  of  the  said  selectmen,  to  be  and  remain  a  permanent 
fund,  the  interest  or  income  only  of  which  to  be  applied  to  the  estab- 
lishment and  support  of  the  school.  The  youth  to  be  instructed  in 
reading,  writing,  and  arithmetic,  and  particularly  in  the  English  lan- 
guage and  in  those  branches  of  knowledge  necessary  to  the  correct  man- 
agement of  the  ordinary  affairs  of  life,  whether  public  or  private,  but 
not  in  the  dead  languages.  The  monitorial  system  of  instruction  to  be 
introduced  and  used  so  far  as  it  may  be  found  on  experience  that  it  can 
be  done  with  advantage. 

The  fund  provided  for  by  the  above  will  was  allowed  to 

accumulate  until  it  reached  the  .sum  of  fifty  thousand  dollars, 

when   the   selectmen   of    Newburyport   appointed  trustees  as 

follows  :  — 

Newhurvport.  Feb.  27,  1838. 

We,  the  undersigned,  in  compliance  with  the  will  of  the  late  Mr. 
Oliver  Putnam,  and  by  authority  therein  given,  have  this  day,  at  a  spe- 
cial meeting  held  for  that  purpose  at  the  selectmen's  room,  chosen  and 
appointed  the  following-named  persons,  viz. :  Caleb  Gushing,  Edward  S. 
Rand.  Rev.  Daniel  Dana.  Wm.  B.  Banister,  Josiah  Little.  Ebenezer 
Stone.  Henry  Johnson,  and  Roger  S.  Howard,  to  be  the  trustees  under 
the  will. 

CH.A.RLES    H.    BaLCH,     "N 

John  N.   Cushixg,  Selectmen 

Jeremiah   Coleman,     V  of 

Henrv   Merrill,  j    A^'-u'luiiyporf. 

Nathaniel  Hortox,  ) 

April  9,  1838,  the  Governor  of  the  Commonwealth  ap- 
proved an  act  passed  by  the  General  Court   incorporating  the 


196  OULD   XEU'BCRY 

Trustees  of  tile  Putnam  I-'ree  School,  and  conferrin^t;"  upon 
them  certain  poweis  and  [iri\'ilei;es.  The  school  building 
was  dedicated  April  12,  1S4S,  and  since  that  date  has  been 
"open  for  the  instruction  of  youth  wherever  they  may  be- 
long." By  an  arrangement  made  with  the  city  of  Newbur}'- 
port  the  Putnam  Free  School,  the  i^rown  High  School,  and 
the  Female  High  School  were  united  in  1868,  and  are  now 
known  as  "  The  Consolidated  High  and  Putnam  Schools." 

The  school  established  by  Oliver  Putnam  has  had  a  practi- 
cal and  stimulating  influence  on  the  education  of  the  young 
and  old  in  this  community  for  fifty  years,  and  manifestly 
owes  its  existence  to  the  wisdom  and  liberality  of  one  who 
from  youth  to  earl)-  manhood  lived  in  the  house  described  in 
these  pages. 

After  his  purchase  of  this  property,  Isaiah  Ilsley  retained 
possession  of  it  until  May  25,  1802,  when  he  sold  to  Stephen 
Ilsley,  Jr.,  "eleven  rods  of  land  and  part  of  the  dwelling- 
house  purchased  of  Oliver  Putnam  "  (book    194,  page  233). 

Isaiah  Ilsley  died  June  12,  1828.  His  son,  John  Ilsley, 
was  appointed  administrator  of  his  estate  in  September,  1828. 

Stephen  Ilsley  died  in  1832  ;  and  his  son,  Stephen  Ilsley, 
Jr..  was  appointed  administrator  in  March,  1832. 

Isaiah  Ilsley  left  two  sons,  John  Ilsley  and  Wade  Ilsley. 
Mrs.  Moses  Knight,  daughter  of  John  Ilsley,  and  Mrs. 
James  H.  Small,  daughter  of  Wade  Ilsley,  purchased  the 
undixided  interest  belonging  to  the  estate  of  Stephen  lisle)', 
and  now  own,  by  purchase  and  inheritance,  the  house  and 
land  conveyed  by  the  heirs  of  Colonel  John  March  to  Captain 
I  Icnr)-  L)()n  in  1713. 

In  1756,  Daniel  Clark,  who  then  owned  the  house  and  land 
that  afterward  became  the  propert)'  of  Isaiah  lisle)',  releasetl 
to  the  ke\'.  Jonathan  Parsons  about  five  rods  of  land,  "being 
the  rear  of  my  lot  where  1  dwell,"  recei\ing  in  exchange  about 
fifteen  rods,  measuring  hfty-two  feet  on  the  road.  About 
this  date  or  some  years  later  e.\tensi\e  alterations  and  im- 
pi'ovements  were  made  in  the  old  house.  .\  large  room  with 
an  outer  door  o|)ening  into  it  from  the  northeasterly  end  was 
constructed,  and    at    ihe    same   time   [irobably  a  few   rooms  in 


ILSLEY    HOUSE  197 

the  rear  were  added,  with  a  lean-to  roof  to  cover  and  protect 
the  old  and  the  new.  There  was  only  one  front  door  at  this 
date.  The  one  nearly  concealed  by  vines  and  bushes,  in  the 
half-tone  print  on  page  190,  was  placed  there  within  the 
memory  of  persons  now  li\-ing". 

The  spacious  apartment  on  the  northeasterly  end  of  the 
house  was  used  at  different  times  for  various  manufacturins; 
purposes  ;  and,  when  Oliver  Putnam  came  into  possession  of 
the  property,  the  unfinished  and  unfurnished  room  was  made 
a  bar-room  and  smoking-room  for  the  convenience  of  guests. 

The  house  was  originally  not  more  than  two-thirds  its 
present  size.  The  older  part  especially  contains  some  inter- 
esting and  curious  specimens  of  early  New  England  work- 
manship. The  cellar  walls  are  solid  and  substantial,  and  were 
evidently  built  to  endure.  The  heaxy  oak  frame  and  the 
immense  chimney  are  certainly  two  centuries  old.  The 
chimney  has  a  foundation  of  solid  stone-work,  eighteen  feet 
in  length  by  eight  feet  in  breadth,  and  at  least  seven  feet 
in  height  from  the  cellar  floor.  Upon  this  immense  mass  of 
masonry  the  chimney  of  ample  proportions  is  built.  The 
fireplaces  on  the  lower  floor  have  been  partially  bricked  up  ; 
"  but  it  is  still  possible  to  walk  underneath  the  mantel  and, 
standing  before  the  huge  oven,  look  upward,  on  a  cloudless 
night,  and  count  the  stars." 


THE   FIRST  TOWN   AND  COURT  HOUSE  IN 
NEWBURY. 


A  portion  of  the  land  purchased  by  Benjamin  Morse  Feb. 
I,  1720-1  (l^ssex  Deeds,  book  38,  page  128,  and  book  39, 
page  13),  from  John  March,  Jr.,  was  sold  May  7,  1734,  to 
set  a  town  and  court  house  upon.  It  is  evident  that  previous 
to  that  date  the  meeting-house  was  the  only  place  in  New- 
bury where  the  inhabitants  could  assemble  for  the  transaction 
of  public  business  or  where  the  county  court  could  hold  its 
sessions. 

As  early  as  1731  an  effort  was  made  to  provide  funds  by 
l^rivate  subscription  for  the  erection  of  a  suitable  building  for 
the  accommodation  of  the  town  and  county,  provided  "  an}' 
person  will  give  the  land  to  set  said  house  upon  between  the 
meeting  house  and  Archelaus  Adams'  tavern  house."  This 
I^lan  was  not  successful;  and  the  town  voted  May  11,  1733, 
to  give  the  First  Parish  of  Newbury  "  liberty  to  build  a  con- 
venient town  house  within  two  )'ears  at  their  own  cost  and 
charge  near  lieutenant  John  March's  house." 

The  following  year  the  parish  purchased  of  Benjamin 
Morse  land  on  the  northeasterly  side  of  "Blue  Anchor 
Tavern,"  then  owned  by  Philip  P'owler.  'I'his  lot  was  bounded 
on  the  east  by  the  street,  on  the  south  b)'  land  of  Philip 
I^'owler,  on  the  west  and  north  I))'  land  of  Benjamin  Morse. 
In  the  ileal  of  conveyance  there  is  a  clause  to  the  following 
effect  :  — 

.And  it  shall  he  and  remain  to  and  lor  y"'  use  of  said  I'arisli  torever 
for  to  keep  a  town  house  and  court  house  upon,  but  in  case  said  I'arisli 
or  V''  town  of  Xewbury  aforesaid  shall  neglect  or  refuse  to  keep  a  town 
house  and  court  house  upon  said  land,  then  the  said  land  shall  return 
unto  and  he  for  ve  use  and  service  of   ve  said  nenianiin  >Morse.  liis  heirs 


F/KST    TOU'X   A. YD    CO  CRT  HOUSE    LV  XEIVBURY      199 

and  assigns  forever,  in  as  full  and   ample  manner  as  it  was  before  this 
deed  was  given  (book  69,  page  3j. 

Feb.  18,  1734-5,  the  First  Parish  of  Newbury  conveyed 
the  above-described  premises,  "  with  a  building  for  town  or 
court  house  upon  the  same,"  to  the  county  of  Essex  (book 
69,  page  3). 

At  the  Court  of  General  Sessions  held  July  9,  1734,  the 
following  order  was  entered  upon  its  records  :  — 

Whereas  the  town  of  Newbury,  May  11,  1733,  voted  that  the  first 
parish  in  Newbury  shall  have  liberty  to  build  a  convenient  town  house, 
&c.,  and  the  said  first  parish  Dec.  4,  1733,  voted  that  said  house  shall 
be  for  y<^  use  of  y"'  County  of  Essex.  &c.,  and  whereas  sundry  of  the 
inhabitants  of  several  of  the  parishes  in  the  town  have  petitioned  the 
court  to  encourage  y'^'  building  of  s"d  house,  the  court,  finding  many 
inconveniences  in  holding  the  court  in  the  public  meeting  house,  ordered 
that  when  the  sd  house  is  completely  built  and  finished,  and  a  deed  of 
the  house  and  land  is  executed  to  the  treasurer  of  the  countv  for  the  use 
of  the  county  to  hold  court  in,  two  hundred  pounds  shall  be  paid  to 
said  parish  out  of  the  County  treasury;  provided  that  the  repairs  of  sd 
house  shall  be  made  ^  by  the  county  and  f  by  Newburv,  the  sd  parish 
and  town  retaining  the  right  to  hold  their  public  meetings  for  public 
business  as  occasion  may  require  if  the  court  is  not  incommoded 
thereby. 

The  building  erected  on  this  lot  of  land  was  used  for  a 
town-house,  court-house,  and  school-house  for  nearly  fifty 
years.  It  was  sold  at  public  auction  March  5,  1780,  to  John 
Mycall,    Esq. 

Feb.  27,  1745-6,  John  Adams,  son-in-law  of  Benjamin 
Morse,  sold  to  the  Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons  the  homestead  and 
buildings  willed  to  him  by  his  father-in-law,  Benjamin  Morse 
(book  88,  page  100). 

Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons  died  July  19,  1776.  His  will  was 
proved  Nov.  26,  i  yjd.  To  his  daughters,  Phebe  Parsons, 
Lucia  Parsons,  wife  of  Joseph  Toppan,  and  Lydia  Parsons, 
he  gave  "  his  house  and  four  acres  of  land  in  Newbury." 
When  the  town-house  was  sold  in  1780,  the  land  under  the 
same  reverted  to  the  above-named  daughters  of  the  Rev. 
Jonathan   Parsons. 


2  00  OULD   NEWBURY 

The  estate  was  subsequentl}'  dixided  ;  and  Moses  Greenleaf, 
wlio  niarrieil  L}clia  1 'arsons,  sold  to  Jonathan  Greenleaf,  Nov. 
15,  1796.  about  fort\'  rods  of  land,  bounded  southeasterly  on 
land  of  Olix'er  Putnam,  northeasterl)'  on  the  street,  north- 
westerly and  southwesterh'  on  land  of  the  L;'rantor  (book  162, 
page  55). 

Dec.  20,  1796,  Jonathan  Greenleaf  sold  to  the  Re\'.  Abra- 
liam  Moor,  pastor  of  the  First  Parish  in  Newbury,  about 
thirty-seven  and  one-half  rods  of  land,  "  beginning  on  the 
highway  by  land  of  Oliver  Putnam,  and  bounded  southerly 
by  Oliver  Putnam,  easterl)'  by  the  street,  &c."  (book  162, 
page  249). 

The  Rev.  Abraham  Moor  died  June  24,  1801.  His  widow, 
as  executrix  of  his  will,  sold  the  above-described  property  to 
Amos  Knight  May  19,  1802.  At  that  date  the  land  formerly 
owned  by  Oliver  Putnam  on  the  south  was  in  the  possession 
of  Isaiah  Ilsley  (book  172,  page  169). 

April  17,  1857,  Elizabeth  Perkins  and  others,  heirs  of  the 
late  Amos  Knight,  gave  a  deed  to  Abigail  S.  Smith,  wife  of 
P^dmund  Smith,  P2sq.,  "of  the  house  and  land  conveyed  by 
the  Rev.  Abraham  Moore  to  Amos  Knight  by  deed  dated 
Ma}'  19,  1802,  recorded  in  book  172,  page  169,  and  given  by 
said  Amos  Knight's  will  to  us"  (book  551,  page  60). 

The  daughters  of  Pxlmund  and  Abigail  S.  Smith  still  own 
and  occupy  the  dwelling-house  that  stands  where  the  hrst 
town-house  stood,  on  High  Street,  near  the  head  of  Marl- 
borough Street,  in  Newbur\-. 


THORLAY'S   BRIDGE   OVER   PARKER   RIVER. 


On  pages  380  and  381  in  the  third  vokime  of  the  "Narra- 
tive and  Critical  History  of  America,"  edited  by  Justin 
W'insor,  Librarian  of  Harvard  University,  there  is  a  photo- 
graphic copy  of  a  map  of  the  New  England  coast  from 
Cohasset,  on  the  southeasterly  side  of  Boston,  to  the  mouth 
of  the  Merrimack  River.  The  original  map,  from  which  it 
was  taken,  was  discovered  in  1884  among  the  Sloane 
manuscripts  in  the  British  Museum  by  Mr.  Henry  F.  Waters, 
of  Salem,  Mass.  It  was  made  as  early,  probably,  as  1634  ; 
and  the  notes  in  the  margin  giving  the  location  of  Governor's 
Island  and  other  prominent  places  are,  undoubtedly,  in  the 
handwriting  of  Governor  Winthrop.  (3nly  a  few  of  the  rivers 
and  towns  are  designated  by  name  ;  but  the  Merrimack  is 
distinctly  marked  as  navigable  to  a  point  now  known  as 
Mitchell's  Falls,  and  is  also  quite  accurately  described  in 
these  words  :  "  It  runns  100  miles  up  into  the  Country,  and 
falles  out  of  a  ponde  10  miles  broad."  A  long,  narrow  island 
at  the  mouth  of  the  river  can  easily  be  identified  as  Plum 
Island,  but  has  no  name  on  the  map.  The  village  of  Aga- 
wam  (Ipswich)  is  C(Minected  by  dotted  lines  with  Sagus 
(Saugus),  Salem,  and  Meadford  (Medford),  showing  that  at 
this  early  date  the  line  of  travel  between  these  places  was 
substantially  the  same  as  now.  The  old  road  from  Newbury 
to  Boston  still  follows,  very  nearly,  the  narrow  path  that  was 
once,  probably,  only  an  Indian  trail  through  the  forest.  It  is 
interesting  to  note  the  long,  circuitous  route  taken  to  avoid 
crossing  broad  rivers  ;  for  bridge  building  was  difficult  and 
expensive  in  those  early  days. 

Where  the  depth  of  water  rendered  streams  impassable, 
ferries  were  established  ;  but  shallow  brooks  and  rivers  were 


THORLAY'S   BRIDGE    OVER    PARKER    RIVER  203 

crossed  at  convenient  fording-places.  For  the  first  fifty 
years  after  the  settlement  of  New  England  only  a  few 
bridges  were  constructed.  In  October,  163 1,  Governor  Win- 
throp,  accompanied  by  several  official  dignitaries,  left  Boston, 
and  travelled  "  on  foot  to  Saugus,  and  the  next  day  to  Salem, 
where  they  were  bountifully  entertained  by  Captain  Endi- 
cott  "  ;  and,  the  day  after,  "they  returned  to  Boston  by  the 
ford  at  Saugus  River,  and,  so  over  at  Mistick." 

At  that  date  there  was  no  bridge  over  the  Saugus  River ; 
and  travellers  on  the  way  to  Boston  were  compelled  to  pass 
through  the  woods  in  the  northern  part  of  the  town,  and  ford 
the  stream  by  the  iron  works,  which  were  near  the  site 
afterward  selected  for  the  woollen  factories  at  Saugus  Centre. 

Mr.  Davidson,  as  agent  for  Matthew  Craddock,  the  first 
governor  of  the  colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  commenced,  in 
1638,  to  build  a  bridge  across  the  Mystic  River  at  Medford. 
This  bridge  was  finished  a  year  or  two  later  by  order  of  the 
General  Court  at  the  expense  of  the  county.  It  was  the  first 
toll-bridge  in  New  England,  and  was  constructed  of  sufficient 
width  to  allow  the  passage  of  ox-teams  and  carts. 

In  order  to  shorten  the  distance  and  facilitate  travel  be- 
tween Boston  and  Salem,  the  inhabitants  of  Saugus  were 
induced  to  build  a  bridge  over  Saugus  River,  the  General 
Court  having  voted,  in  1639,  to  allow  the  town  the  sum  of 
fifty  pounds  for  that  purpose,  and  fift}'  shillings  annually 
toward  the  cost  of  keeping  the  bridge  in  repair.  The  work 
was  completed  with  some  difficulty,  although  the  distance 
from  shore  to  shore  is  not  over  thirty  feet  at  the  point  where 
the  bridge  is  located.  It  was  evidently  built  and  maintained 
at  the  public  expense,  for,  in  March,  1648,  Edmund  Ingalls, 
the  first  white  inhabitant  of  Eynn,  was  drowned  "  because  of 
insufficiency  of  the  bridge,"  and  his  brothers  and  sisters  peti- 
tioned the  General  Court  for  indemnity  to  the  extent  of 
/,  100,  and  their  petition  was  granted.  March  23,  of  the 
same  year,  the  court  allowed  the  town  twenty  pounds  toward 
repairing  the  "great  bridge"  over  Saugus  River. 

The  gradual  increase  of  travel  and  the  extension  of  this  old 
road    from   Salem    to    Newbury   led    to    the    construction   of 


204  OULD   XEWBCRY 

Thorlay's  bridi;-e  over  the  river  Parker.  This  bridge  was 
built  previous  to  1654,  and  was  the  first  one  erected  over 
navigable  waters  within  the  limits  of  old  Xewbury,  and  comes 
third  on  the  list  of  bridges  that  have  been  in  continuous  use 
in  New  l-'.ngland  for  two  centuries  and  a  half. 

May  3,  1654,  the  General  Court  voted  that  "  Richard 
Thorlay,  havinge  built  a  bridge,  at  his  owne  cost,  ouer  Xew- 
bury Riuer,  hath  liberty  to  take  2''  for  euery  horse,  cow,  oxe, 
or  any  other  great  cattle,  as  also  one  half  peny  a  peece  for 
euery  hogg,  sheep,  or  goat  that  shall  pass  ouer  the  sd  bridge, 
as  long  as  he  shall  well  &  sufticyently  repayre  &  mayntayne 
the  same,  p\-ided  that  passengers  shalbe  free." 

In  1655,  the  subject  of  bridge-building  was  considered  by 
the  General  Court,  and  provision  was  made  for  the  apportion- 
ment of  the  cost  of  construction  upon  the  several  towns  in 
each  count)'  where  such  bridges  were  located  ;  and,  two  }'ears 
later,  it  was  provided  that  "  hereafter  t)nly  a  few  bridges  be 
built  at  the  expense  of  the  counties,  but  the  expense  and  cost 
be  met  by  the  several  towns  wherein  they  are  erected." 

In  the  records  of  the  count)'  court  held  at  Ipswich  ]\Iay 
3,  1670,  is  the  following  order  :  — 

The  court  being  informed  that  the  Bridge  and  way  in  Newbury 
bound.s  from  the  bridge  toward  the  meeting  house  &  from  the  Bridge 
toward  Rowley  being  in  manv  places  very  bad  &  dangerous.  The  court 
orders  Capt.  Wm  :  (ierrish  &  Daniell  Pea[r]ce  sen''  be  impowered  to  see 
the  sayd  way  (being  a  county  highway)  suficiently  repaired.  And  are 
heerby  impowred  to  call  forth  the  Inhabitants  of  the  sayd  Towne  of 
Newbury  for  to  doe  &  finish  the  worke  suficiently  for  repaireing  & 
mending  the  same  efectuallv,  and.  if  any  shall  refuse  to  do  there  acord- 
ing  to  there  order,  to  returne  there  names  to  any  one  maiestrate.  who 
shall  iL>ho  shall  have  power  to  send  for  them  iS:  bynde  them  over  to 
Answere  it  at  the  court.  And  for  tiie  niL'iuling  the  Ihidge  to  give  an 
account  of  the  charge  to  be  defrayed  by  tlie  county. 

Evidentl)',  these  repairs  weie  not  attended  to,  for  the  court 
issued  the  following  order,  under  date  oi  April  iS.   1671  :  — 

Wheras  the  bridge  neare  Thurlaves  is  in  danger  to  be  carrved 
awav   if   not   care   taken    to   secure   it.    Tliis  court   Impowers   iS;   orders 


THORLAVS   BRIDGE    OVER    PARKER   RIVER  205 

Daniell  Pearce  sen'-  and  John  Pearson  to  see  it  made  suficient.  and  the 
constable  and  selectmen  of  Newbury  are  recjuired  to  be  assistant  thereto, 
and  power  given  to  impresse  such  helpe  as  is  nessesarj-  for  efecting  of 
it.  and  that  be  done  by  midsomer  and  a  returne  made  that  it  is  finished 
att  -Salem  court  next. 

Notwithstanding  this  second  order  requiring  the  work  "  to 
be  done  by  midsomer,"  it  became  necessary,  March  26,  1672, 
to  issue  a  third  order,  as  follows  :  — 

Whereas  the  Bridge  neare  Thurlayes  is  in  danger.  This  court  orders 
and  Impowers  John  Pearson  of  Rowly  to  see  it  made  suficient,  and  the 
constables  of  Newbury  &  Rowley  are  required  to  be  assistant  to  him 
therin.  and  power  given  them  to  impresse  such  helpe  as  is  nessesary  for 
the  efecting  the  same  in  there  respective  Towne,  &  that  it  be  finished  by 
midsomer,  and  such  as  shall  neglect  there  duty  heerin  shall  be  lyable  to 
be  fined  acording  to  the  merrit  of  there  defect. 

In  compliance  with  this  last  order  of  the  court,  some  tem- 
porary repairs  were  agreed  upon,  and  the  bridge  was  made 
passable  for  a  few  years.  When  it  became  necessary  to  pro- 
vide something  more  substantial  and  durable,  a  petition  was 
presented  to  the  court  asking  liberty  to  build  a  new  bridge 
and  collect  toll  from  all  persons  using  it.  On  the  "  26"' 
day  of  the  9"'  month  1678,"  the  court  issued  the  following 
order : — 

In  answer  to  y*^  petition  of  y"  select  men  of  the  Towne  of  Newberye, 
there  is  liberty  granted  to  the  selectmen  of  y*^  Towne  to  build  a  sufficient 
firme  &  safe  Bridge.  &  agree  with  any  pson  of  sulificiencye  to  doe  the 
work  at  as  low  a  price  as  they  can.  &  at  the  Towne  charge  to  sattisfy 
for  it ;  &  the  court  doth  alow  that  everye  one  that  shall  come  over  the 
bridge  shall  paye  one  penny  for  a  single  pson.  &  three  pence  for  a  horse 
&  man  in  money,  which  they  alow  them  to  take  till  the  court  shall  see 
cause  to  take  the  said  Bridge  into  the  care  of  y*^  county,  which  if  they 
shall  doe,  they  doe  ingage  to  the  sd  Towne  of  nevvbery  y*  they  shalbe 
alowed  out  of  this  county  Tresurye  the  value  of  y"^  said  Bridge  accord- 
ing as  it  shalbe  Judged  by  able  men  what  it  is  worth  at  the  time  it  shal- 
be taken  into  the  countyes  care. 

Dec.  4,  1678,  the  town  of  Newbury  voted  that  "Thorlay's 
bridge  should  be  built  at  the  town's  charge,  as  the  court  gave 


2o6  OULD   XEWBUKY 

them  liberty  "  ;  but  the  selectmen  ap])arently  delayed  action 
until  some  decision  could  be  reached  in  re^i;-ard  to  the  lenL;'th 
of  time  that  the  bridg'e  should  remain  at  their  disposal.  At  a 
session  of  the  court  held  at  Salem  "  on  the  24"'  day  of  the  4"' 
month  1679," 

In  answer  to  a  petition,  vnder  the  -Selectmens  hands,  of  the  Towne 
of  Newbery:  It  is  ordered  by  the  court,  that  it  be  referred  to  Cap': 
Daniell  Pearce.  l^"  Hen  :  Jaquis  of  newbery.  if  thev  can  on  good  terms 
agree  with  any  psons.  that  will  build  a  bridg  over  the  River,  they  shall 
have  the  proftitt  :  of  it  for  ten  years,  according  to  former  Allowance,  pro- 
vided thev  fully  compleate  the  agreement  within  one  weeke  after  the  end 
of  the  court.  And.  in  case  none  be  agreed  with.  That  they  take  care  the 
bridge  be  demolished. 

This  order  evidently  accomplished  the  desired  result.  Cap- 
tain Daniel  Peirce  and  Henry  Jaquis  agreed  with  Thomas 
Thorlay,  July  6,  1679,  to  build  a  new  bridge  over  the  ri\er 
Parker.  This  agreement  is  recorded  in  the  Essex  Registry 
of  Deeds  at  Salem  (Ipswich  Series,  book  4,  page  322),  and 
reads  as  follows  :  — 

This  presnt  wittnesseth  that  wheras  the  countv  court  at  Salem,  in 
June  last,  reffered  it  to  Cap'  Daniell  Peirce  &  Henry  Jaquis  of  New- 
bury, and  delegated  them  to  agree  with  any  pson  or  psons  for  the  build 
of  a  new  bridge  over  the  River  by  Tho  :  Thurleyes  house.  The  savd 
Daniell  I'eirce  &  Henry  Jaquis  have  agreed  and  concluded  with  Thomas 
Thurley  of  Newbury  for  the  building  a  compleat  and  substantial! 
Bridge  over  the  sd  River,  w"h  the  sayd  Thomas  thurley  bindeth  him- 
selfe  by  these  presents  to  do,  and  fully  to  finish  and  compleat  bv  the 
county  court,  to  be  held  at  Ipswich  the  last  Teousdav  of  march  next. 
And  the  sayd  Thomas  thurlev  Doth  herby  engage  himselfe  imediatlv  to 
take  care  for  the  present  making  of  the  bridge  now  standing,  safly  pa.s- 
sable  for  Horse  &  man,  and  bindeth  himselfe  in  the  sum  of  fifty  pounds 
&  George  march  of  Newbury  in  fifty  pounds  more,  their  heires.  exec- 
utors, lV  administrators,  to  secure  the  sayd  Towne  of  Newburv  iS;  the 
county  from  time  to  time  during  the  space  of  ten  yeares  from  the 
penality  of  the  law  for  the  want  or  defect  of  the  sd  Bridge.  In  consid- 
deration  of  w'^^h  premisses  the  sd  Daniell  Peirce  and  Henry  Jacjuis  doe 
agree,  with  the  savd  ||  Tho:  ||  Tiiurlev.  that  he  shall  aske.  demand.  t!v 
receive  uf  e\er\-  liorsman  that  shall  pass  ouer  the  sd  Bridge,  for  himselfe 
and  his  horse  tliree  i)ence.  and  e\er\'  pson  wli  jKisses  over  on  foote  one 
jjcnny    for    every    time    of    such    jjassage.    W'li    ]xivment    was    fornierlv 


THORLAY'S   BRIDGE    OVER   PARKER   RIVER  207 

allowed  by  the  sd  county  court,  provided  it  shall  be  in  the  power  of  the 
sd  Tho  Thurley,  for  the  best  secureing  of  the  sayd  payment,  to  order  the 
way  to  the  sayd  bridg  some  other  way,  that  may  be  no  considderable 
damage  to  the  passengers.  This  agreem'  to  continue  for  the  terme 
of  ten  yeares,  and,  if  the  county  court  then  see  fitt  to  take  the  sayd 
Bridge  into  their  care  &  possession,  then  according  to  formar  order  by 
the  county  court  in  no"  last  the  Bridge  to  be  valued  by  abell  men  what 
it  is  worth,  and  the  sd  Tho  :  Thurley  satticefied  for  it.  This  agreement 
the  sayd  Dan:  Peirce  &  Henry  Jaquis,  so  farr  as  they  have  power  deli- 
gated  to  them,  do  rattifie  &  confirme  to  the  sayd  Tho :  Thurley.  his 
heires  &  assignes.  In  wittnes  wherof  the  pties  above  conserned  have 
to  these  presents  enterchangably  sett  there  hand,  dated  July  6"\  1679. 

Daxiell  Peirce, 
Henry  Jaquis. 

This  was  explained  before  signeing  that  the  sad  Tho  :  Thurley  shall 
have  liberty  to  put  any  barr  or  gate  as  hee  sees  htt  to  restraine  any  that 
shall  refuse  to  pay. 

This  agreement  was  acknowledged  to  be  the  act  &  deed  of  the  psons 
subscribing  July  G'*',  1679,  before  me. 

Jo:   WooDBRiDG,  Coininis''. 

Memorandum  that  whereas  on  the  other  syde  it  is  mentioned  y' 
George  march  bindeth  himselfe  ||  with  Tho  :  Thurley  ||  in  fiftv  pounds 
for  the  secureing  of  the  Towne  of  Newbury  &  the  county  from  the 
penalty  of  the  law  for  the  defect  of  the  sd  Bridge,  and  the  sd  Georg 
march  refused  to  signe  the  sd  agreem^  The  sd  Thomas  Thurley  doth 
heerby  engage  himselfe,  his  heires,  executors,  &  administrators,  and 
also  his  land  now  in  his  present  possession,  in  securitv  for  the  pforni- 
ance  of  the  sd  condition  to  the  full  efect.  &  acording  to  the  true 
tennor  of  it.      Dated  July  7"',  1679. 

The  court  at  Salem,  the  25  of  9*  m"  1679,  do  allow  the  above 
written  agreem*. 

Atteste  HiLLiARD  \'errex,  Cler. 

This  is  a  true  copie  of  the  originall  in  my  hands. 

Jo  :   Woodbridge. 
Recorded  Aprill  21  :  1680. 

Under  date  of  June  1 1,  1680,  the  General  Coiu-t  ordered  :  — 

In  answr  to  a  motion  of  the  selectmen  of  Rowley  for  the  setting  free 
of  a  bridge  now  obstructed  in  the  county  of  Essex  &  bounds  of  New- 
bury, once  a  county  bridge,  now  in  the  hands  of  a  particular,  the   Court 


2o8  OL'LD    XEWDURV 

sees  meete  to  grant  their  desires.  &  doe  order  tlie  sajd  ijridge  to  he  free. 
&  be  a  county  bridge  againe.  and  what  hath  been  e.xpended  by  anv  par- 
ticular person  for  the  repayring  thereof  to  be  payd  or  repayed  them  by 
the  sajd  countv. 

At  a  session  of  the  cotint\'  court  held  at  Salem  "on  the 
30"'  day  of  the  9"'  month  1680,"  lliorla}-  was  awarded  fif- 
teen  pounds   on   the   followini;-  terms  and   conditions:  — 

This  court  doe  order  that  the  county  Treasurer  shall  pav  Tho  Thurlo 
fifteene  pounds  :  of  the  first  pav  that  comes  in  to  his  hands,  which  the 
court  conceaivs  is  what  the  comittee  gave  in  or  allowed  in  consideration 
of  his  charge  upon  the  bridg  at  newberye,  which  the  Generall  Court 
ordered  the  county  of  Essex  to  sattisfy  him  for,  &  if  the  said  Thurlo  do 
not  rest  sattisfyed  in  that,  he  may  repaire  to  the  next  county  court  held 
at  I])swich.  whoe  will  then  consider  what  shalbe  his  Just  due. 

Although  not  satisfied  with  this  award,  Thorlav-  did  not 
press  his  claim  for  further  allowance  until  the  court  met  at 
Salem,  June  26,  1683.  He  was  then  granted  a  hearing  ;  and, 
after  an  examination  of  his  accounts,  the  following  decision 
was   placed   on   record  :  — 

This  Court  haveing  received  &  pused  the  motion  of  Thomas  Thurle\' 
to  have  further  allowance  for  his  disburstment  vpon  the  bridg  at  new- 
Ijerye.  vpon  veiw  of  the  order  of  this  court,  30  :  q"'"  :  80  :  which  made 
alowance  to  him  according  to  Gen'"  Court  order.  iS:  his  claime  by  his 
acco' :  (which  seemes  to  vs  Irrational)  being  examined  &•  the  pfect  acco' : 
of  the  transactions  of  the  Court  about  this  matter  not  being  p'sented. 
This  court  sees  noe  cause  to  advance  further  in  allowance  to  him.  but 
Judg  if  that  Thurley  had  given  acco*  of  what  he  receiued  for  Tole  in 
money  &  otherwaise  from  passengers  :  viz  :  Strangers  &  townes  people 
of  newberye.  he  hath  had  farr  more  tlian  he  doth  give  accot.  >.^  make 
ciialleng  of  tlioe  most  of  tliem  and  such  as  are  to  liigh  vallued.  or  such 
as  ought  not  to  be  accounted. 

\S\  order  of  the  (ieneral  C'oiut,  adopted  Jime  11.  1680, 
Thorlay's  bridge  was  made  fi'ce.  b'oi-  man)-  xears  it  was  an 
essential  part  of  the  great  thoi-oughfare  which  extended  from 
Boston  to  Ne\\hur\',  and  thence  oxer  the  ferr\'  at  Carr's 
Island  to  Xoithei'n  .\ew  Ilampshire  and  the  eastern  frontier. 
It    has    been    lehuilt    and    rei)aireil    several    times  ;    but    the 


r" 


*■.   /■ ,'    fit,      ';.'■• 


^^^S^ 


ji 
ti 


4l 


CORNER    OF  THE    BOSTON    AND    MIDDLE    ROADS. 


"%?!^-N.  '^^'***i^M(V-, 


AT    DUMMER    ACADEMY. 


rilOKLAY'S   BRIDGE    OVER    PARAER    R/l'ER  211 

location  has  never  been  changed,  and  it  still  stands  on  the 
same  site  that  it  occupied  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago. 
Along  the  roadside  there  are  quaint  old  milestones,  at 
regular  intervals,  to  mark  the  distance  to  and  from  Boston. 
Within  the  limits  of  the  town  of  Newbury  four  of  these 
stones  are  now  standing.  Two  of  them  for  many  years  lay 
flat  upon  the  ground,  but,  through  the  efforts  of  Messrs. 
William  Little  and  N.  N.  Dummer,  they  have  recently  been 
placed  upright.  The  stone  that  marked  the  thirty-fourth 
mile  from  Boston  is  missing.  Tradition  says  it  was  taken 
from  its  proper  place  fifty  years  ago,  and  used  in  the 
construction  of  a  culvert  on  the  road  leading  to  Byfield 
Factory. 


PLUM   ISLAND. 


A  line  of  low  sand-hills,  extending  for  nearl}"  nine  miles 
from  the  mouth  of  the  Merrimack  Ri\-er,  in  a  southeasterly 
direction,  and  separated  from  the  main  land  by  a  shallow, 
winding  stream  ;  a  few  straggling  bushes,  with  thin  patches 
of  coarse  grass  scattered  here  and  there ;  and  a  narrow 
strip  of  soft,  )'ielding  sand  washed  by  the  waters  of  the 
Atlantic,  are  the  distinctive  features  and  prominent  char- 
acteristics of    Plum    Island. 

Long  before  the  settlement  of  Newbury,  Indians  wandered 
aimlessly  over  its  hills  of  sand  or  camj^ed,  in  summer-time, 
beneath  a  few  scrubby  and  stunted  pine-trees  growing  near 
its  southern  extremity.  On  a  map  discovered  in  1884 
among  the  manuscripts  of  the  British  Museum,  e\idently 
drawn  before  Newbury  had  a  legal  existence,  this  long, 
narrow  island  is  correctly  laid  down,  but  no  name  is  given 
to  it.  Soon  after  the  landing  of  the  Rev.  Thomas  Parker 
and  his  party  on  the  banks  of  the  Ouascacunquen  River,  in 
1635,  the  island  was  called  IMum  Island.  It  probably  re- 
ceived its  name  from  the  large  number  of  somewhat  acrid 
beach  plums  gathered  there  during  the  months  of  August 
and   September. 

Although  ap])arentl}-  unattractix'e  and  unproductix'e,  the 
early  settlers  of  Newbury  found  con\enient  pasturage  at 
the  southern  extremity  of  the  island  for  horses  and  cattle, 
and  were  inclined  to  exercise  their  rights  and  prixileges  to 
the  exclusion  of  all  others.  But  March  13,  1639,  the  (jen- 
eral  Couit  issued  the  following  decree:  — 

I'lum  Lsland  is  to  remain  in  the  Court'.s  power:  onlv  for  the  present 
Ipswich,  Newbury,  and  the  new  phmtation  (Rowlevi  between  them  may 
have  the  use  of  it.  till  tiic  Couit  sliail  see  cause  otherwise  to  dispose 
of  it. 


PLUM    IS  LA  AD  213 

March  15,  1649,  the  Rev.  Thomas  Parker,  the  Rev.  James 
Noyes,  Percival  Lowle,  John  Spencer,  Richard  Kent,  I{d\vard 
Woodman,  and  others  petitioned  the  General  Court  to  grant 
the  whole  of  Plum  Island  to  the  town  of  Newbury.  In 
answer  to  this  petition,  (3ct.  17,  1649,  the  court  granted 
two-fifths  of  the  island  to  Newbury,  two-fifths  to  Ipswich, 
and  one-fifth  to   Rowley. 

Sept.  23,  1661,  the  island  was  divided,  "  begining  at  the 
upland  neere  Merrimacke  barre,  and  so  extending  to  Sandy 
beach"  ;  and  September  25  the  division  was  completed,  "be- 
ginning at  Rowley  bounds  and  reaching  to  Sandy  beach." 

Some  years  later  complaint  was  made  in  regard  to  the 
unequal  division  of  pasturage  between  the  inhabitants  of 
the  several  towns  named.  In  answer  to  the  petition  of  the 
selectmen  of  Ipswich,  relating  to  the  use  and  improvement 
of  Plum  Island  by  Ipswich  and  Newbury,  the  court  ordered, 
in  1679,  "that  no  horses  nor  cattle  be  put  upon  said  island 
without  the  consent  of  the  major  part  of  the  proprietors  of 
the  said  island." 

In  1739,  an  "Act  for  the  effectual  preventing  of  horses, 
sheep,  cattle,  and  swine,  from  running  at  large  or  feeding 
upon  a  certain  island,  called  Plum  Island,  lying  in  Ipswich 
Bay,  in  the  County  of  P2sse.\,"  was  passed  by  the  General 
Court.  This  act  was  continued  in  force,  by  renewal,  until 
1792. 

During  the  Revolutionary  War  troops  were  stationed  on 
the  island  to  prevent  the  landing  of  soldiers  or  sailors  from 
English  vessels  on  the  coast.  In  the  month  of  May,  1776, 
the  town  of  Newburyport  voted  to  erect  a  fort  on  the  island 
at  a  cost  not  exceeding  four  thousand  pounds  ;  and  June  30, 
1777,  the  town  "voted  to  allow  the  soldiers  stationed  at 
Plum  Island  candles  and  sweetening  for  their  beer."  In 
1 78 1,  the  General  Court  "Resolved,  that  there  be  raised  in 
the  county  of  Essex,  and  stationed  at  the  fort  on  Plum 
Island,  one  corporal  and  two  matrosses."  And  November  3, 
of  the  same  year,  provision  was  made  for  relieving  the  men 
from  active  service  during  the  winter  season  by  the  passage 
of  another  resolution,  from  which  the  following  extract  is 
taken  :  — 


2  14  OULD   XEWBURY 

And  it  is  farther  resolved  that  the  guards  at  Plum  Island  .  .  . 
be  forthwith  discharged  and  the  commander  in  chief  be  desired  to 
dismiss  them  accordingly,  and  give  such  orders  as  he  shall  think  proper 
for  securing  the  cannon  and  stores  belonging  to  this  Commonwealth  in 
the  forts  on  Plum  Island  (Acts  of  1781.  Chapter  320). 

July  6,  1782,  the  General  Court  ai^ain  "Resolved,  that 
there  be  raised  in  the  county  of  Essex  and  stationed  at  Plum 
Island  one  corporal  and  three  matrosses "  (Acts  of  1782, 
Chapter  131 ). 

Matrosses  were  soldiers  who  came  next  to  the  gunners  in 
a  train  of  artillery,  and  assisted  them  in  loading,  firing, 
and  sponging  the  guns.  They  carried  firelocks,  and  usually 
marched  with  the  store  wagons  as  guards  and  assistants. 

In  1783,  the  Newburyport  Marine  Society  erected  two 
beacons  on  Plum  Island,  and  the  merchants  of  Newbury- 
port supplied  the  funds  necessary  for  maintaining  a  light 
for  the  protection  and  guidance  of  incoming  vessels  at  night. 
This  expense  was  unequally  distributed  among  a  few  public- 
spirited  citizens  who  appealed  to  the  legislature  to  pro\-ide 
light-houses  and  lights  at  the  public  cost.  The  General  Court 
responded  with  the  following  act  :  — 

Whereas  it  will  be  of  great  advantage  to  the  commerce  of  this 
commonwealth  that  two  public  lights  should  be  established  upon  the 
north  end  of  Plumb  Island,  in  Ipswich  Bay.  in  the  county  of  Essex, 
in  such  a  position  as  to  form  but  one  light  to  vessels  passing  over  the 
bar  into  Merrimack  River, 

Be  it  therefore  enacted  that  the  Commissary-General  with  Messieurs 
William  Coombs.  Michael  Hodge.  >S;  William  Bartlett  of  Newburv- 
port  in  the  County  of  Essex,  merchants,  be.  and  hereby  are  invested 
witli  full  powers  and  authority  to  erect  &  build  two  small  wooden 
light  houses  on  the  nortli  end  of  Plumb  Island  aforesaid,  and  in  the 
position  above  described,  convenient  for  fixing  proper  lights  thereon  : 
provided  the  expense  of  erecting  >^  building  the  said  light  houses 
shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  ^300  lawful  money :  iv;  provided  the 
said  light  houses  be  so  constructed  as  whenever  the  said  liar  should 
shift,  the  said  liglit  houses  be  moved  so  as  ahvavs  to  l>e  kept  in  the 
position  aforesaid. 

And  be  it  further  enacted  That  the  expense  of  luiiUling  the  said 
light  houses  shall  be  defrayed  out  of  the  monies  which  siiall  lie 
received   into   the   Treasurv  of  the   Commonwealth   for  the    vear    1 7X8 


PLUM  ISLAXD  215 

on  account  of  duties  imposed  for  the  purpose  of  supporting  &  main- 
taininii  the  several  light  houses  in  this  Commonwealth  not  before  appro- 
priated. 

And  be  it  further  enacted,  that  when  the  light  houses  aforesaid  shall 
be  completed  the  Commissary  General  provide  suitable  lights  to  be 
placed  therein.  &  maintain  them  in  the  same  manner  &  out  of  the  same 
funds  as  other  public  lights  of  this  Commonwealth  are  provided  and 
maintained;  and  the  Commissary  General  is  hereby  directed  &  enjoined 
to  provide  for  the  keeping  the  said  light  houses  at  all  times  in  the  posi- 
tion above  described. 

Provided  nevertheless.  That  nothing  in  this  Act  shall  oblige  the  Com- 
missary General  to  advance  any  money  for  the  support  of  the  Lights  to 
be  erected  as  aforesaid,  until  the  debts  previously  contracted  for  the 
support  of  the  public  lights  be  first  discharged  out  of  the  funds  appro- 
priated therefor ;  but  if  any  person  or  persons  will  advance  money  for 
the  support  of  the  said  lights  to  be  erected  as  aforesaid,  the  Commissary 
General  is  directed  to  charge  the  money  so  advanced  to  the  said  funds 
(Chapter  21,  Acts  of  1787)- 

Jan.  22,  1789,  the  General  Court 

Resolved  that  there  be  allowed  &  paid  out  of  the  treasury  of  this 
commonwealth  to  ye  keeper  of  the  light  houses  on  Plumb  Island  for  ye 
time  being  /66  per  annum  from  &  after  the  fifteenth  day  of  February. 
1789. 

Seven  days  later  the  General  Court, 

Resolved  that  there  be  allowed  &  paid  out  of  the  Publick  Treasury 
to  William  Coombs,  Michael  Hodge  &  William  Bartlett,  a  committee 
appointed  by  a  law  of  this  Commonwealth  passed  Nov.  16,  1787,  to 
build  two  wooden  light  houses  on  the  north  end  of  Plumb  Island,  the 
sum  of  /266,  4  shillings,  10  pence,  being  in  full  for  their  expenses  for 
erecting  &  building  the  said  light  houses.  The  same  to  be  paid  out  of 
the  fund  &  in  the  manner  already  provided  by  law  for  this  purpose. 

June  10,  1790,  the  General  Court  passed  the  following- 
Act  for  granting  to  the  United  States  of  America  the  several  public 
light  houses  within  this  commonwealth.  Be  it  enacted.  That  there  be 
&  hereby  are  granted  unto  the  United  States  of  America  .  .  .  the  two 
light  houses  situate  on  the  north  end  of  Plumb  Island  in  the  county 
of  Essex,  together  with  the  lands  &  tenements  thereunto  belonging,  the 
property  of  this  Commonwealth,  with  the  jurisdiction  of  the  same.  .  .  . 


2  l6 


OULD    XEWBURY 


Also  the  four  following  buoys  at  the  mouth  of  the  Merrimack  River, 
one  on  the  Hum-sands,  another  on  the  Sunken  Rocks,  another  on  the 
(langway  Rocks,  and  the  fourth  on  the  Half-Tide  Rocks.  .  .  . 

Provided  Nevertheless.  That  if  the  I'nited  .States  shall  at  any  time 
hereafter  neglect  to  keep  lighted  and  in  repair  anv  one  or  more  of  the 
Light-houses  aforesaid,  then  the  grant  of  such  Light  House  or  Light 
houses  so  neglected  shall  be  void  &  of  no  effect. 

Provided  also  .  .  .  That  if  the  United  .States  shall  at  any  time  here- 
after make  any  compensation  to  any  one  of  the  I'nited  States  for  the 
cession  of  anv  lighthouse  heretofore,  or  which  may  be  hereafter,  made 
to  the  I'nited  .States,  that  then  like  compensation  be  made  to  this  Com- 
monwealth by  the  United  States  for  the  cession  of  the  lighthouses  afore- 
said in  proportion  to  their  respective  values. 


PLUM    ISLAND    LIGHT-HOUSE. 

The  a])p(Hntmeiit  of  Abner  Lowell,  of  Xewburyport,  as 
light-keeper  wa.s  made  by  \\'ashinL;ton,  and  .sent  to  the  senate 
for  confirmation  March  lo,  1790.  Mr.  Lowell  entered  upon 
his  duties  immediately  after  his  appointment,  and  served  as 
light-keeper  for  nearly  twenty  years.  He  was  succeeded  by 
his  son  Lewis  Lowell,  who  held  the  jiosition  luitil  1823,  and 
then  !))■  his  grandson  Josej^h  Lowell,  who  continued  in  the 
same  line  ot  service  for  foiu'teen  years,  so  that  three  genera- 
tions of  the  Lowell  famil)-,  father,  son,  and  grandson,  held 
the  office  of  light-keeper  at  Plum   Island  for  fort\'-se\en  }ears. 

In  order  to  establish  the  rights  and  pri\ileges  of  the  I'nited 
States  in  and  to  the  land  under  and  adjoining  tlic  light-houses, 
the  legislature  of  the  C'onnnonwealth  of  Massachusetts  passed 
a  general  law  ceding  jurisdiction,  as  follows:  — 


Jurisdiction   is   hereby   ceded   to  the  I'nited  States  over  anv  tracts  of 
land    within    this    commonwealth,    whether    ujjland    or    covered    l)y    tide 


PLUM    /SLA. YD 


217 


water,  the  title  to  which  has  heretofore  been  acquired  bv  the  United 
States  for  the  purpose  of  erecting  or  maintaining  light  houses,  beacon 
lights,  range  lights,  light-keepers  dwellings  or  any  signals  for  navigators 
&  over  any  tracts  of  land,  whether  upland  or  covered  bv  tide  water,  to 
which  the  United  States  shall  acquire  title  from  this  Commonwealth. 
Such  Jurisdiction  is  hereby  ceded  subject  to  the  provisions  of  Chapter 
233.  Acts  of  1871  (Chapter  3S3,  .Acts  of  1874). 

Aug.  8.  1856,  one  of  these  light-houses  was  destroyed  by 
fire,  and  the  other  was  rebuilt  and  provided  with  new  lanterns. 
A  movable  light  was  then  placed  in  range  with  the  stationary 


PLUM    ISLAND    HOTEL. 


one,  to  mark  the  shifting  channel  at  the  mouth  of  the  Merri- 
mack River,  and  was  maintained  by  the  federal  government 
until  1890,  when  it  was  discontinued.  The  half-tone  print 
on  the  preceding  page  gives  a  view  of  the  light-house  now- 
standing. 

The  Plum  Island  Turnpike  and  Bridge  Corporation  w^as 
organized  the  latter  part  of  December  in  the  year  1804. 
Subscribers  to  the  capital  .stock  met  Jan.  ig,  1805,  and  ap- 
pointed a  committee  to  e.xamine  and  lay  out  a  route  for  the 
proposed  turnpike.  The  following  year  the  General  Court 
passed  "  An  Act  to  establish  Plum  Island  Turnpike  and 
Bridge  Corporation."  Leonard  Smith,  ELbenezer  Stocker, 
Moses  Brown,  William  Bartlett,  David  Coffin,  Jonathan  Gage, 
and  John   Greenleaf,  and  their   associates,  were  made  a  cor- 


2l8 


OULD    XEU'BURY 


poratimi  lOi"  the  purpose  of  la\'ini;'  and  making;'  a  turnpike  road 
from  the  northeast  ^W(\  of  Rolfe's  Lane  in  the  town  of  Xew- 
bur)'  to  a  point  on  l^lum  Ishuul  about  one  mile  north  of 
Sandy  beach,  so  called,  and  building  a  bridge  across  Plum 
Island  Ri\er,  etc.   (Chapter  41,  Acts  of  1806). 

This  act  of  incorporation  was  accepted  by  the  stockholders 
March  14,  1806,  and  the  turnpike  and  bridge  were  com- 
menced and  comj^leted  during  the  summer  of  that  year.  The 
hotel  was  probabh'  built  in  the  )-ear  following.  Benjamin 
Clifford,  who  was  apparently  the  first  landlord,  entered  upon 
his  duties   March  26,  180S.      After  passing  through   \arious 


FLAT-IRON    POINT.      ■JOPPA. 


vicissitudes  of  good  and  bad  fortune,  during  which  both 
bridge  and  turnpike  were  seriously  injured  by  severe  storms 
and  frecjuently  rendered  wholly  impassable,  the  stock  of  the 
corporation  was  purchased  by  a  few  indixiduals,  and  some 
years  later  the  comi:)any  was  reorganized.  Under  the  man- 
agement of  the  Amesbur)',  Haxerhill  &  Lawrence  Street 
Railwa}'  Comi:)any,  it  now  provides  comenient  and  commodi- 
ous horse-cars  for  the  transportation  of  \isitors  to  and  from 
the  island  during  the  summer  months. 

The  turn})ike  l^egins  onl\'  a  few  rods  below  the  pictur- 
esque collection  of  moss-co\ered  houses  and  tpiaint  little 
shops  on  the  ri\er  bank,  known  b}'  the  name  of  "joppa." 
That  localit\',  like   its   ancii-'nt    namesake,  has   been    inhabited 


PL  CM    /SLA  XI) 


2  19 


b)'  fishermen  from  time  immemorial.  As  early  as  1640, 
sturgeon  were  there  packed  and  pickled  for  the  European 
market,  at  a  later  date  mackerel  and  cod  were  brought  from 
the  sea  and  dried  upon  fish-flakes,  and  now  large  quantities  of 


CLAM    HOUSES.— "JOPPA." 

clams  are  taken   daily  from   the   flats   in   that  neighborhood, 
and  made  ready  for  shipment  to  the  far  west. 

From  the  foot  of  Rolfe's  Lane  (now  South  Green  Street) 
the  turnpike  stretches  away  across  the  marshes  to  Plum 
Island,  two  miles  distant. 


^J^ 


PLUM    ISLAND    RIVER    AND    MARSHES. 


A  convenient  bridge  spans  the  narrow  river  that  separates 
these  marshes  from  the  sand-hills  beyond;  and  innumerable 
cone-shaped  hay-ricks  are  scattered  here  and  there,  far  as  the 
eye  can  reach,  "along  these  low  green  prairies  of  the  sea." 


OULD   NEWBURY 

The  shining  tide  steals  softly  up 
Across  the  wide  green  splendor. 

Creek  swelling  creek,  then  all  at  once 
The  marshes  make  surrender. 


.And  all  day  long  the  summer  sea 
Creams  murmuring  up  the  shingle : 

.And  all  dav  long  the  airs  of  earth 
With  airs  of  heaven  mingle.'" 


PLUM    ISLAND    BEACH. 


In  summer  the  island  is  a  favorite  resort  of  pleasure 
parties,  and  the  sandy  beach,  washed  by  the  waters  of  the 
Atlantic,  resounds  with  shouts  of  joy  and  laughter.  Young 
and  old  gather  there  for  rest  and  recreation  ;  and,  when  at 
night  the  shadows  begin  tt)  lengthen  and  the  stars  a]:>i:)ear 
one  by  one  in  the  blue  vault  abo\-e,  the  songs  of  youth  and 
beaut}'  fill  the  air  and  mingle  with  the  murmur  of  the  sea. 

In  winter,  the  \'iew  from  these  low  and  desolate  sand- 
hills is  often  grand  and  majestic.  When  a  fierce  storm  is 
raging,  the  waxx's  dasli  fiirioiLsIx-  on  the  beach,  and  the  strong 
east  wind  blows  tlie  spra\'  fai'  iiilaiul.  At  such  a  time  wrecks 
are  cast  upon  the  shoi'c  witli  terrible  loss  ot  liic.  .\lmost 
every  season  brings  one  or  more  ot  these  tlisasters  ;  but  the 
most  memorable  one  occmied  Dec.  J4,  1^39.  when  the  brig 
"  I'ocahontas  "  was  lost,  and  all  on  board  perished. 


DEER  ISLAND. 


Among  the  papers  and  public  documents  on  file  at  the 
state  house  in  Boston  is  the  following  petition  :  — 

To  the  honorable  Generall  Court  now  assembled  at  Boston  the  25"'  of 
May.  1655. 

The  humble  petition  of  Joseph  Sweete  humbly  Sheweth 

That  yo'  petitioner  being  one  y'  a  long  time  had  Lyved  in  Newbury, 
and  bv  Reason  of  the  multitude  of  Inhabitants  y'  have  crowded  in  there, 
and  thereby  the  accommodations  ye  town  has  had  to  dispose  of.  he  has 
had  httell  or  no  land  given  him.  wh^'i  the  Selectmen  have  been  sensible 
of.  and  therefore  have  granted  hym  Right  to  an  Hand  lying  In  Merri- 
mack Ryer.  being  not  above  6  or  8  Rod  from  Xuberry  Shore  and  Caled 
Deare  Hand,  which  is  not  above  six  acres  of   Land. 

Yo'-  poore  petitioner  humbly  prays  this  honorable  court  would  be 
pleased  to  confirm  ye  grant  of  ye  said  Deare  Hand  to  yo'  petitioner. 

And  he  shall  pray,  &c. 

The  signature  of  this  petition  is  missing,  and  there  is  no 
indorsement  upon  it  stating  when  it  was  received  by  the 
General  Court  or  how  it  was  disposed  of.  In  the  absence  of 
the  petitioner,  it  was  possibly  overlooked,  or  withdrawn  for 
want  of  support.  If  the  selectmen  of  Newbury  granted  the 
island  to  Joseph  Sweete,  as  stated  in  his  petition,  no  record 
of   that   fact   can   now  be  found. 

The  first  mention  of  Deer  Island  in  the  records  of  the 
colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay  is  under  date  of  May  15,  1672, 
and  is  as  follows  :  — 

In  answer  to  the  petition  of  the  inhabitants  of  Salisbury,  as  also  that 
of  M''  George  Carrs.  it  is  ordered  that  Deare  Island  &  Eagle  Island, 
petitioned  for  as  to  the  propriety,  remajne  the  countrys.  the  timber  & 
trees  to  be  for  Georg  Carr  for  the  vse  of  the  bridg.  till  this  Court  take 
further  order :   the  herbage  of  them,  w*'>  liberty  to  cutt  downe  brush   & 


2  22  OULD    XKWLU'RY 

underwood  to  make  pasture  lor  slieepe,  to   be  to  &   for  the  vse  of  the 
sajd  towne  of  Sali.sl)ury. 

At  a  town  nicctini;  liclcl  in  Salislnu'}-  Ma}'  i6,  1682,  it  was 
voted  "that  the  town  cloth  w"'  all  ihankfullness  accept  of  ye 
bell  w'"'  is  i)resentecl  imto  them  by  Air.  George  Hewes.  And 
ye  town  in  wa}'  of  gratuit)'  &  manifestation  of  their  thank- 
fullness  &  res[KXt  to  ye  s'  Mr.  Mewes  do  for  ye  prsent  L;"i\e 
unto  him  all  their  right  y'  they  ha\'e  in  Ueare  Hand  accord- 
ing to  ye  grant  of  ye  Gen"  Court." 

At  the  same  meeting  the  town  "ordered  that  Mr.  Hrad- 
bur}'  shall  write  a  note  to  Mr.  Hewes  to  deliver  }-e  bell  to 
goodman  Norton  &  Sam"  Getchell  &  Nath"  &  Jn"  Easman  & 
goodman  Collins  to  be  brought  down  to  ye  meeting  house." 

George  Hewes  died  intestate  previous  to  1698.  His  son 
Solomon  Hewes,  of  Portsmouth,  gave  a  deed  of  the  island  to 
John  Stevens,  of  Portsmouth,  March  17,  1698  (ICssex  Regis- 
try of  Deeds,'book  13,  page  300). 

John  Stevens,  of  Salisbury,  conveyed  it  to  Thomas  Merrill, 
of  Newbury,  Jan.  i  i,  1706-7  (book  21,  page  93). 

Thomas  Merrill,  of  Salisbury,  sold  it  to  Thomas  llartlett. 
of  Newbury,  April  25,  1727  (book  '^i,  p^ge  286). 

Thomas  ]-}artlett  died  intestate,  and  administration  was 
granted  May  9,  1744.  In  the  division  of  his  real  estate, 
this  island  was  assigned  to  his  daughter  Sarah   Bartlett. 

Sarah  Bartlett,  of  Newbury,  conveyed  to  her  brother  luioch 
Bartlett,  of  Newbury,  tanner,  "the  island  called  Deer  Island 
in  Merrimack  River,"  Aug.  28,  1746  (^book  91,  jxige  121). 

Feb.  16,  1753,  luioch  l^artlett  sold  to  Matthias  Plant  "the 
island  called  Deer  Island  opposite  to  said  I'lant's  homestead, 
containing  seven  acres"  (l)ook  153,  page  252).  The  Rew 
Matthias  Plant  died  April  2,  1753.  His  will,  dated  l-eb.  2'-,, 
1750-I,  and  pro\-ed  May  7,  1753,  gave  to  his  wife  L\'dia 
all  his  real  estate.  She  died  Oct.  8,  1753.  Her  will,  dated 
Sept.  29,  1753,  and  proxecl  ( )ct.  22,  1753,  ga\e  to  her 
"cousin  Thomas  Haitlett,  Junior,  Deer  Island  King  in 
Merrimack   River." 

'Ihomas    Bartlett    married    Hannah    Mootl\-,  Xo\-.    18,  1718. 


DEER    ISLAXD  223 

His  will,  dated  Feb.  27,  1767,  and  proved  May  28,  1771, 
mentions  his  wife  Hannah  and  children,  Cutting  Bartlett, 
Edmand  Bartlett,  Abigail  Pettingal,  Judith  Cook,  Mary 
Somerby,  Sarah  Coffin,  Hannah  Bartlett,  Lydia  Bartlett, 
Elizabeth  Bartlett,  Thomas  Bartlett,  and  Parker  Bartlett. 
To  his  sons,  Thomas  and  Parker,  is  devised  "  all  my  estate 
that  I  have  given  them  deeds  of  in  my  life  time,  and  also  all 
the  rest  of  my  estate,  whether  real  or  personal,  they  to  pay 
for  the  support  of  my  wife  "  and,  also,  a  certain  specific  sum 
to  daughters  Lydia  and  Elizabeth  Bartlett. 

Thomas  Bartlett,  son  of  Thomas  and  Hannah  (Moody) 
Bartlett,  was  born  Feb.  2,  1734.  In  his  will,  dated  Oct.  25, 
1 78 1,  and  proved  March  13,  1782,  he  gave  to  his  "wife 
Hannah  all  my  estate,  both  real  and  personal."  Their  only 
child,  Nehemiah  Bartlett,  was  born  Sept.  20,  1764. 

Nehemiah  Bartlett  sold  to  Dudley  Atkins  Tyng  and  others 
Dec.  13,  1 791,  "a  certain  island  lying  in  Merrimack  River 
in  the  town  of  Newbury,  commonly  called  Deer  Island,  con- 
taining five  acres  formerly  the  property  of  Thomas  Bartlett, 
deceased"  (book  155,  page  14). 

Dudley  Atkins  Tyng  and  others,  by  deed  dated  March  5, 
1792,  conveyed  it  to  the  proprietors  of  the  Essex-Merrimack 
bridge  (book  155,  page  14). 

Under  chapter  three  hundred  and  nine  of  the  acts  of  the 
legislature  of  1868  the  bridge  was  made  free,  and  laid  out  as 
a  public  highway  by  the  county  commissioners.  April  5, 
1870,  the  proprietors  of  the  bridge  sold  the  island  to  Green- 
leaf  Dodge  ;  and  he  conveyed  it  to  Abby  W.  Dodge  April 
21,  1 8 70.  Abby  W.  Dodge,  of  Newburyport,  widow,  sold 
the  property  to  Richard  S.  Spofford,  of  Newburyport,  Oct.  i, 
1874. 

Mr.  Spofford,  who  by  the  last-mentioned  conveyance  came 
into  possession  of  Deer  Island,  was  a  lineal  descendant  of 
John  Spofford,  who  settled  in  Rowley  previous  to  1643. 

Colonel  Daniel  Spofford,  fourth  in  descent  from  John  Spof- 
ford, was  born  in  Rowley  in  April,  1721,  and  married  Judith 
Follensby  in  1741.      He  was  at  the  battle  of   Lexington,  and 


DEER   ISLAXD  225 

afterward  had  command  of  a  regiment   in  the   Revolutionary 
War. 

His  youngest  son,  Amos  Spofford,  born  Sept.  20,  175 1, 
was  the  first  regular  physician  permanently  settled  in  the 
second  parish  of  Rowley.  He  married  Irene  Dole,  daughter 
of  Captain  Moses  and  Ruth  (Peabody)  Dole,  by  whom  he  had 
eight  sons  and  three  daughters. 

His  fourth  son,  Richard  Smith  Spofford,  was  born  May  24, 
1787.  He  graduated  at  Harvard  College  in  181 2,  and  com- 
menced the  practice  of  medicine  in  Newburyport  in  18 16. 
He  married  Mrs.  Frances  Maria  (Mills)  Lord.  For  more 
than  fifty  years  he  was  one  of  the  leading  physicians  of  the 
town,  displaying  great  skill  and  sagacity  in  the  diagnosis  of 
disease  and  alleviating  suffering  by  judicious  medical  advice. 
He  died  Jan.  19,  1872,  leaving  two  children  (Richard  S. 
Spofford,  Jr.,  and  Frances  H.  Spofford)  and  a  step-daughter 
(Mrs.  Georgiana  Hall,  a  daughter  of  Mrs.  Spofford  by  a 
previous  marriage). 

Richard  S.  Spofford,  Jr.,  was  born  in  Newburyport  Feb. 
15,  1833.  He  was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of  the 
town  and  at  Dummer  Academy,  Byfield.  He  read  law  in  the 
office  of  Hon.  Caleb  Cushing,  and  was  admitted  to  practice  in 
the  United  States  circuit  court  at  \Vashingtt)n  in  1856,  and 
the  year  following  was  made  a  member  of  the  bar  in  Fssex 
county  and  in  Suffolk  county,  Massachusetts. 

He  was  three  times  elected  representative  to  the  General 
Court  from  Newburyport,  in  1857,  1858,  and  1865. 

He  married,  Dec.  19,  1865,  Miss  Harriet  Elizabeth,  daugh- 
ter of  Colonel  Joseph  N.  and  Sarah  Prescott. 

He  was  deeply  interested  in  the  work  and  ritual  of  the 
Masonic  Fraternity,  and  was  made  a  Mason  in  St.  John's 
Lodge,  Newburyport,  Aug.  25,  1854.  He  became  a  Knight 
Templar  in  the  Newburyport  Encampment  Aug.  21,  1856; 
and  Nov.  21,  1862,  he  was  advanced  to  membership  in  the 
Supreme  Council  of  the  Inspectors  General  of  the  thirty-third 
degree. 

He  was  associated  with  Hon.  Caleb  Cushing  as  a  law 
partner  in  Washington  for  a  time,  and  afterward  with  Charles 


DEER    ISLAND  227 

W.  Tuttle,  Esq.,  in  Boston.  During  the  last  few  years  of  his 
Hfe  he  was  the  attorney  and  solicitor  of  the  Galveston, 
Harrisburg  &  San  Antonio  Railway  Company,  which  now 
forms  a  part  of  the  Southern  Pacific  railway  system. 

In  1884,  he  was  a  candidate  for  congress  in  the  seventh 
Massachusetts  district.  He  made  a  strong  and  vigorous 
canvass  ;  but  his  political  friends  were  in  a  minority  in  the 
district,  and  he  failed  to  receive  the  number  of  votes  neces- 
sary to  secure  his  election.  On  account  of  ill-health  he  did 
not  feel  able  to  renew  the  contest  in  1886.  He  died  Aug.  1 1, 
1888,  and  was  buried  in  Oak  Hill  Cemetery,  Newburyport. 

His  love  and  appreciation  of  this  picturesque  spot,  where 
he  lived  for  many  years,  find  recognition  in  the  following  lines 
inscribed  to  "  R.  S.  S.  at  Deer  Island  on  the  Merrimac,"  by 
John  G.  Whittier  :  — 

"  Make,  for  he  loved  thee  well,  our  Merrimac, 
From  wave  and  shore  a  low  and  long  lament 
For  him  whose  last  look  sought  thee,  as  he  went 
The  unknown  way  from  which  no  step  comes  back. 
And  ye,  O  ancient  pine-trees,  at  whose  feet 
He  watched  in  life  the  sunset's  reddening  glow, 
Let  the  soft  south  wind  through  your  needles  blow 
A  titting  requiem  tenderly  and  sweet ! 
No  fonder  lover  of  all  lovely  things 
Shall  walk  where  once  he  walked,  no  smile  more  glad 
Greet  friends  than  his  who  friends  in  all  men  had. 
Whose  pleasant  memory  to  that  island  clings. 
Where  a  dear  mourner  in  the  home  he  left 
Of  love's  sweet  solace  cannot  be  bereft." 

The  island  covers  an  area  of  nearly  seven  acres.  The 
easterly  end  is  low,  and  often  submerged  by  the  flowing  tide  ; 
but  the  westerly  shore  is  bold  and  rocky,  and  fringed  with 
pine  and  fir  trees.  The  Essex-Merrimack  bridge,  suspended 
by  heavy  chains,  connects  it  with  Newburyport.  Formerly, 
a  picturesque  structure,  built  of  wood  and  partly  covered, 
extended  from  the  island  to  the  Salisbury  shore  ;  but  that 
has  been  removed  and  replaced  by  an  iron  bridge  of  modern 
construction. 


2  2b  OULD    XEWBCRY 

The  clwcllinL;'  house,  with  its  gambrel  roof  and  broad 
piazzas,  half  hidden  in  the  shrubber\",  has  an  air  of  comfort 
and  seclusion  ;  and  from  its  western  windows  the  inmates 
look  out  upon  a  broad  antl  extended  \iew  of  the  ri\er  and 
the  picturesque  hills  be\'ond.  The  staircase  is  broad  and 
quaint,  and  the  spacious  hall  abo\-e,  extendini^  through  the 
house  trom  front  to  rear,  gix'cs  it  a  stateh'  appearance. 
It  was  the  residence  of  the  toll-gatherer  when  the  island 
was  the  property  of  the  bridge  corporation,  and  at  one  time 
was  occupied  as  a  tavern  for  the  accommodation  of  travellers. 
Under  the  charge  of  Mr.  I^Lbenezer  Pearson  as  landlord,  it 
became  a  noted  resort  for  pleasure-seekers.  A  delightful 
spot  in  summer  and  a  famous  rendez\-ous  for  sleighing  parties 
in  winter,  it  was  especially  attractive  when  a  supper  or  a 
dance  closed  the  festi\'ities  of  the  da}". 

On  the  evening  of  Dec.  ig,  1816,  Major  Elijah  P.  Good- 
ridge,  of  Bangor,  Me.,  passed  the  tavern  shorth'  before  nine 
o'clock,  and  crossed  the  bridge  on  his  way  to  Xewbur\'port. 
On  the  road  now  known  as  Moseley  A\enue,  near  the  brow 
of  the  hill,  he  was  assaulted,  according  to  his  statement,  bv 
three  men,  thrown  from  his  horse,  beaten,  wounded  in  the 
hand  b\'  a  pistol-sht)t,  and  then  robbed  of  a  large  sum  of 
money,  and  left  senseless  on  the  ground.  Upon  his  reco\-ery 
he  made  his  way  back  to  the  island,  and  told  an  incoherent 
story  about  the  crime  that  had  been  committed.  The  affair 
caused  a  great  furor  of  excitement.  Mr.  Pearson,  the  inn- 
keeper, was  arrested  as  being  in  some  way  connected  with 
the  robbery  ;  but  in  the  absence  of  satisfactor)'  proof  he 
was  acquitted.  Sexeral  other  persons  were  afterward  ac- 
cused, and  brought  to  tiial.  Daniel  Webster  was  engaged 
as  counsel  for  a  number  of  the  defendants.  The  testimony 
of  Goodridge  on  the  witness-stand  was  so  incredible  and 
contradictor)-  that  \erdicts  of  "not  guilt\' "  were  rendered, 
(iradually,  public  opinion  was  aroused,  ami  the  pix'tended 
robber)'  was  denounced  as  a  frauil.  in  oi-dcr  to  escape 
from  tinancial  end)arrassment,  and  at  the  same  time  ac- 
count for  the  loss  of  his  peisonal  piopertN',  it  is  saitl  that 
Major    ( loodridge    de\ised    this    scheme    and    carried   it    into 


DEER    ISLAND  229 

effect,  firing  the  pistol  with  his  own  hand,  and  afterward 
throwing  it  into  the  river.  He  soon  after  disappeared  from 
public  view,  and  is  said  to  have  died  in  seclusion  in  one  of 
the  Southern  States. 

The  old  tavern  stood  close  to  the  public  highway  that 
crosses  the  island ;  but,  when  the  property  came  into  the 
possession  of  Mr.  Spofford,  the  house  was  removed  to  a  more 
retired  spot  a  few  rods  distant,  and  entirely  remodeled  within 
and  without. 

In  this  attractive  and  picturesque  old  house  Mrs.  Spofford 
still  receives  and  entertains  her  kindred  and  friends.  Under 
its  sheltering  roof  most  of  her  stories  and  poems  have  been 
prepared  for  publication,  and  there  she  still  finds  time  and 
opportunity  for  recreation  and  employment  congenial  to  her 
tastes. 


BARTLETT'S  COVE. 


On  the  wcstcii)"  bank  of  the  Merrimack  Ri\er,  just  aboxe 
the  Essex  Merrimack  Bridge,  the  family  of  Richard  Bart- 
lett,  Sr.,  settled  at  a  very  early  date.  They  came  to  New- 
England  in  1635,  probably  in  company  with  Rev.  Thomas 
Parker  and  others  from  Wiltshire,  England,  in  the  ship  "  Mary 
and  John."  llie  name  of  John  Bartlett,  eldest  son  of  Rich- 
ard Bartlett,  apj^ears  in  the  list  of  jiassengers  by  that  vessel. 

Richard  Bartlett,  Sr.,  brought  with  him  from  England  a 
CO})}'  of  the  Breeches  Bible,  which  has  been  carefully  pre- 
served in  the  family,  and  was  exhibited  by  Miss  Elizabeth  G. 
Hoyt,  of  Chelsea,  Mass.,  at  the  celebration  of  the  two  hun- 
dred and  fiftieth  anniversary  of  the  settlement  of  Newbury, 
June  10,  1885. 

Mr.  John  Ward  Dean  has  given  a  very  minute  and  interest- 
ing description  of  this  Bible  in  the  Genealogical  Register  for 
April,  1886;  and  in  the  same  number  ma}-  be  found  a  care- 
fully prepared  article  on  "  Newbury  and  the  Bartlett  Eamih'," 
by  John  Coffin  Jones  Brown,  Escj. 

l-'rorn  the  original  written  records  in  this  old  Bible,  and  the 
additional  information  supplied  b)'  the  i)ublicati()n  referred  to 
above,  it  is  evident  that  the  children  of  Richard  Bartlett,  Sr., 
at  the  time  of  his  emigration  to  America,  were  as  follows  :  — 

Joane,  born  Jan.  29.  1610. 
John,  born  Nov.  9.  1613. 
Thomas,  born  Jan.  22,  161 5. 
Richard,  born  Oct.  31.  1621. 
Cliristoplicr,  l)orn  Feb.  25.  1623. 
Anne,  l)orn  Feb.  26,  1625. 

Richard  Bartlett,  Sr.,  died  May  20,  1647.  There  has  been 
some  doubt  whether  he  came  to  New   ICnirlanti   with  his  sons 


BARTLETT'S    COVE  231 

in  1635  ;  but  the  discovery  of  his  nuncupati\'e  will  and  the 
inventory  of  his  personal  estate,  now  for  the  first  time  pub- 
lished, will  set  these  doubts  at  rest.  Both  the  will  and  inven- 
tory are  exceedingly  interesting,  and  throw  considerable  light 
upon  the  history  of  those  early  days.  The  will  expressly 
states  that  the  testator  gave  to  his  son  John  "  the  greate 
bible,"  undoubtedly  the  one  exhibited  at  the  two  hundred  and 
fiftieth  anniversary  of  the  settlement  of  Newbury  ;  and  the 
items  of  the  inventory  are  of  sufficient  historical  importance 
to  warrant  their  publication  in  full,  with  the  appraised  \'alues 
affixed. 

In  the  Essex  Registry  of  Deeds,  Ipsw^ich  Series,  book  i, 
pages  26  (89)  and  26  (91)  are  the  following  records:  — 

The  testimony  of  William  Titcombe  &  Anthony  Somersby  concerning 
the  last  will  &  testament  of  Richard  Bartlett  sen'r,  of  Newbury,  de- 
ceased, the  20th  of  May  :  1647  :  aboute  a  month  before  he  deceased,  we 
being  with  him,  &  two  of  his  sons  being  present,  he  being  very  ill.  & 
had  bene  weake  all  the  spring,  finding  in  himselfe  that  he  was  not  like 
to  continew,  he  desired  us  to  take  notice  what  his  mind  was  concerning 
that  small  estate  he  had.  how  he  woukl  dispose  of  it:  as  for  his  sonn 
John  Bartlett  he  had  don  for  him  more  than  for  the  rest  of  his  children, 
and  at  that  tyme  did  not  dispose  any  to  him.  To  his  sonne  Christopher 
Bartlett  he  did  bequeath  the  debt  which  latly  he  had  borrowed  of  him, 
which  was  five  bushells  of  wheate,  if  so  be  it  should  please  the  Lord 
to  take  him  awav  at  this  sickness,  or  ells  if  he  should  lye  longe  vissitted, 
his  necessity  would  require  that  he  should  pay  it  againe.  To  his  daugh- 
ter Johan,  wife  of  William  Titcombe,  he  bequeathed  one  pair  of  new 
shoes  for  herselfe,  &  her  four  daughters  each  one  a  pair  of  shoes;  & 
all  the  rest  of  his  goods  &  chattells  that  were  not  disposed  of  he  be- 
queathed wholy  to  his  sonne  Richard  Bartlett,  whom  he  made  his  sole 
heir  &  executor.  I,  Anthony  Somersby,  the  next  day  persuaded  him  to 
give  something  to  his  son  John  Bartlett,  his  answer  was,  that  he  had 
been  with  his  sonne  Richard  Bartlett  this  twelve  month,  &  all  that  he 
had  was  to  little  for  to  give  him,  seing  he  had  bene  weake  &  ill  &  could 
doe  little  but  lay  upon  his  sonnes  charges,  besides,  sd  he,  if  I  should  lye 
longe  sick  I  shall  be  chargable  to  Richard  &:  not  to  any  of  the  rest,  and 
for  John  I  have  done  more  formerly,  yet  I  will  give  him  y«'  warming 
pan.  and  vpon  his  sonns  request  he  gave  him  a  great  bible  :  this  he 
Spake  being  in  perfect  memory,  and  so  continued  to  the  last  breath. 

I,  Edward  Rawson.  wittness  to  the  last  part  of  the  will,  that  I  often 
heard   the  said   Richard   Bartlett,   sen"r,  say  (y*^'  time  of  his  sickness)  he 


232  OULD    XEWBCRY 

would  &  did  give  all  to  his  sonne  Richard   IJartlett.  the  29"'  of   Septem- 
ber. 1647.  this  was  before  y"'  witness. 

Edw.akd   Rawson. 

.Mr.  Rawson  Sworne  to  the  first  part  of  this  will  :  .Vnthonv  Soniersby 
sworiie  to  the  wholl  will,  before  the  Court  held  at  Ipswich.  2S"i :  7"' 
month.  1647.  p.  me 

Robert  Lord.   Clcrke. 

.\n  Inventory  of  the  Goods  &  Chattells  of  Richard  Bartlett  of  Xew- 
jLuy.  shoemaker,  who  deceased  the  21th  of  Mav.  1647.  taken  by 
Villiam    Titcombe,   John    Bartlett  &    Anthony   .Somersby. 

£      s.     d. 

mprimis  :   in  leather  valewed  at 2150 

tem  :   his  wearing  apparrell, 1        40 

tern  :   2  pairs  of  canvas  sheets i         10 

tem  :   one  old  shirt  &  a  napkin o        21 

tem  :   one  old  coverlit  &  a  blankett i        00 

t :   one  old  Hock  bed  &  a  bolster.                      i        00 

t :   one  old  great  Kettle 0120 

t :   one  pair  of  pott  hangers, o        14 

tem  :  one  brasse  pott ..0100 

tem  :  two  little  kettles o        50 

t :   one  small  brass  morter, o        76 

t :   one  warming  pan o       60 

t :  one  great  bible,     .           0120 

t :   some  other  small  bookes o        70 

t :   one  cow 4        50 

t :  one  heiffer,       .1      150 

t :   his  working  geare  &  lasts  : o        40 

t :   in  old  pewter  platters,  and  an  old  pint  pott o        20 

t  :   one  Spitt  &  frying  pan, o        36 

t :   one  small  muskett o       90 

t :   one  paire  of  bellowes.     .      .           o        10 

t :   bushell  bagg,  2  old  chests,  a  stone  bottle  &  a  half  bushel 

bag, o       50 

t :   his  debts.                           4190 

t  :    in  .Silver ....  ...230 

Witness  that  this  is  a  true  inventory. 

the  ni'ke  of      W'li.i.i.VM   TlTCOMH, 
John    I;.\rtlkt. 
.Anthonv    S().mi:ksi!V. 

Testified  before  tiie  Court  upon  oath  bv  .Vnthonv  .Somersbv.  2Sth  : 
7tli  :    1^)47.  p.  me  Ror.KRT    Lord,    Clirkc. 


BARrLETT'S    COVK  233 

Joane,  the  eldest  daui;'hter  of  Richard  Bartlett,  Sr.,  married 
William  Titconib,  who  is  said  to  have  come  to  New  England 
in  the  ship  "  Hercules,"  and  whose  testimony  is  given  in  the 
affidavit  cjuoted  above.  He  was  also  one  of  the  appraisers 
of  the  estate. 

The  sons,  John,  Richard,  and  Christopher,  are  mentioned 
in  the  list  of  freeholders  in  the  town  of  Newbury,  Dec.  7, 
1642,  "as  entitled  to  their  proportionable  right  in  all  the 
waste  lands  undisposed  of."  John  was  made  a  freeman  May 
I?)  ^^17-  When  the  new  town  was  laid  out,  lot  No.  27  was 
assigned  to  him.  "Nov.  29,  1647.  John  Pike,  Jr.,  of  New- 
bury, for  a  bill  of  ^5,  assigned  for  me  to  take  up  of  Richard 
Kent,  senior,  of  Newbury,  by  John  Bartlett,  &  £,1  cash,"  con- 
veyed to  John  Bartlett,  of  Newbury,  "4  acres  in  ye  verge  of 
lotts,  on  the  north  side  of  the  frogge  pond  in  Newbury,  in  the 
new  towne,  being  bounded  on  ye  north  with  the  land  of  An- 
thony Morse,  on  the  south  with  the  land  of  Thomas  Browne, 
on  the  east  end  the  land  of  John  Bonde,  and  on  the  west 
with  the  streete "  (Esse.x  Deeds,  Ipswich  Series,  book  i, 
page  54  (177).  This  lot  of  foiu'  acres  of  land  was  on 
Market  Street,  then  called  Cross  Street.  The  house  that 
John  Bartlett  owned  and  occupied  stood  on  the  southeasterly 
side  of  the  lane  leading  to  W'atts'  Cellar,  now  State  Street, 
as  will  appear  by  the  following  conveyance  made  May  29, 
1660,  and  recorded  in  book  3,  page  177  (132),  Ipswich 
Series  :  — 

John  Bartlett.  sen',  of  Newbury,  for  love  &  a.s  part  of  a  portion  in 
marriage  to  my  son  John  Bartlett  with  Sara,  daughter  of  John  Knight, 
sen'',  of  Newbury,  conveys  to  said  John  and  Sara  6  acres  of  land  in 
Newbury,  "in  the  field  comonly  knowne  by  the  name  of  the  nether  nyne 
lotts,  being  six  acres  of  my  eight  that  is  scitvate  in  the  field  abovesayd. 
reserveing  full  two  acres  of  the  sayd  eight  for  my  owne  proper  use  on 
the  north  syde  ne.xt  to  the  land  of  Anthony  Morse,  seni'",  the  other  six 
acres  is  bounded  with  the  land  of  Steephen  Greenliefe  on  the  east,  the 
abovesayd  two  acre*  on  the  North,  the  high  street  on  the  South,  the 
Crose  Street  on  the  west,  as  also  two  acres  of  land  more  being  halfe  my 
house  lott,  having  Edward  Richardsons  land  on  the  North.  Wm. 
Chandlours  land  on  the  East,  the  lane  goeing  downe  to  Watts  his 
Seller    on    the  west,   and   mv  other  part   of    land    on  which    my  house 


BARTLETTS    COVE  235 

standeth  vpon  the  south.'"  with  house  buiU  on  the  said  two  acres.  &C.  : 
&  also  a  freehold  boutrht  of  Thomas  Dow. 


John  Bartlett  died  Feb.  5,  167S,  at  the  age  of  si.xtv-five. 

His  brother  Christopher  bought  of  \\'illiam  Titcomb, 
March  i,  1 651,  four  acres  of  land  "in  the  feild  called  the 
lower  nine  lotts,  bounded  by  the  highway  neere  the  frogg 
pond  on  the  South  &  Cross  street  on  the  west,  John  Bond's 
land  on  the  east,  &  John  Bartlett's  on  the  north"  (book  i, 
page  III    (325),  Ipswich  Series). 

Si.x  or  seven  years  later  Christopher  was  probably  settled 
at  Bartlett's  Cove.  Feb.  3,  1658,  he  conveyed  to  John 
Bayley  eleven  acres  of  land  "  bounded  by  the  highway  to 
Salsberry  new  Towne  on  the  .south  and  Merrimack  River  on 
the  North  "  in  exchange  for  fifteen  acres  of  land  bounded  by 
the  Merrimack  River  on  the  north  and  his  own  land  on  the 
other  three  sides  (book  3,  page  260  (196),  Ipswich  Series). 
This  last  deed  was  not  acknowledged  until  1661,  and  was  not 
recorded  until  1673.  April  8,  1662,  he  sold  to  Henry  Teux- 
bury  twenty  acres  of  land  in  Newbury,  bounded  by  the  Merri- 
mack River  on  the  north,  by  a  creek  on  the  east,  by  land  of 
Goodman  Moody  on  the  south,  and  land  of  grantor  on  the  west 
(book  2,  page  184  {341),  Ipswich  Series).  Christopher  Bart- 
lett died  March  15,  1669-70.  Thomas  Bartlett,  a  brother, 
born  Jan.  22,  161  5,  and  Anne  Bartlett,  a  sister,  born  Feb.  26, 
1625,  probably  died  in  Fngland. 

Richard  Bartlett,  Jr.,  who  w^as  made  executor  of  his  father's 
will  and  also  residuary  legatee,  was  probably  the  first  one  of 
the  family  who  settled  at  Bartlett's  Cove.  March  26,  1650, 
he  bought  eight  acres  of  land  of  John  Spencer  "  on  y''  north 
side  of  Merrimack  ridge  as  it  is  boitnded  by  John  Pike's  land 
on  the  east  and  the  land  of  M'  William  Thomas  on  the  west, 
the  streete  on  the  South  and  a  parcell  of  land  comon  on  the 
north  next  to  Merrimack  river  of  an  equal  breadth,"  with 
cellars,  houses,  etc.  (book  i,  page  70  (218),  Ipswich  Series). 
And  April  10,  1652,  he  bought  an  adjoining  lot  of  William 
Thomas,  "bounded  with  Merrimack  River  on  the  north  and 
the  high  Street  on  the  South"  (book  3,  page  350  (270),  Ips- 


236  OUI.D    NEWBURY 

wich  Scries).  Tliis  last  deed  was  not  acknowledged  until 
1663,    and    was    not    recorded    until    1^)75. 

April  22,  1652,  Lieutenant  Robert  Pike,  of  Salisbur}',  sold 
to  Richard  Bai'tlett,  of  Newbur\',  five  acres  of  upland  in  New- 
bury, "  nere  Merrimack,  bounded  east  on  John  l{mer\''s  land, 
west  s'd  Richard  Hartlett,  north  Merr)'make  Ri\ei',  South 
High  Street"  (book  i,  page  12S  (366),  Ipswich  Series). 

Now  II,  1652,  lulward  Rawson,  of  Boston,  gentleman,  and 
wife,  Airs.  Rachell,  for  £)>.  sold  to  Richard  Hartlett,  of  New- 
bur)',  eight  acres  of  upland  in  Newbury,  "  boimded  with  the 
land  of  the  sayd  Richard  Hartlett  on  the  east,  the  highwa}' 
on  the  south,  the  land  of  James  Jackman  on  the  west,  and 
Samuell  Poores  on  the  North."  The  deed  was  acknowledged 
in  1656,  and  recorded  in  1675  (book  3,  page  352  (272),  Ips- 
wich Series). 

Oct.  20.  1669,  Henry  Teuxbury,  of  Newbury,  w^eaver,  for 
£,\QO,  sold  to  Richard  Hartlett,  of  Newbury,  house,  barn,  and 
twenty-si.x  acres  of  pasture  and  arable  land  in  Newbur)-, 
"  which  I  lately  purchased  of  Christopher  l^artlett,  of  New- 
bury, bounded  with  Merrimack  River  on  the  North,  the  land 
of  Steven  Swett  &  Robert  Coker  on  the  east,  a  black  oake 
being  the  Southeast  ctjrner  bounds,  ne.xt  the  highwa}'  the 
land  of  Christopher  Hartlett  abovesayd  and  the  highwa}'  on 
the  south  bounds,  and  Christopher  Hartlett's  land  also  on  the 
south"  (book  3,  page  353  (272),  Ipswich  Series). 

Some,  if  not  all,  of  the  land  described  in  the  above  deeds 
was  at  or  near  Hartlett's  Co\'e,  and  has  remained  in  the  j^os- 
session  of  the  family  to  the  present  day. 

Richard  Hartlett,  Jr.,  was  ])rominent  in  church  affairs, 
and  took  an  active  part  in  the  long  struggle  between  Rev. 
Thomas  Parker  and  the  members  of  his  church  under  the 
lead  of  Mr.  lulward  Woodman.  lie  was  a  delegate  to  the 
Cieneral  Court  tor  se\'eral  }'ears.  He  dietl  prexious  to  Juh' 
18,  169CS,  aged  seventy-seven.  In  his  will,  dated  .\\->\\\  19, 
1695,  and  proved  July  18,  1698,  he  gi\es  to  his  thi'ee  daugh- 
ters, Abigail,  llannali,  and  Rebecca,  "his  ilwelling  house  and 
barn  and  oi'chard  and  land  adjoining,  about  12  aci'cs,"  and 
the  rest  and  lesidue  of  his  estate,  not  speciticalK'  dexised,  to 
his  sons  Samuel,   Richard,  and   |ohn. 


BARTLETT'S    COVE  237 

His  son  Samuel  was  born  Feb.  20,  1646,  and  married 
Elizabeth  Titcomb,  of  Newbury,  May  23,  167 1.  Hon.  Levi 
Bartlett,  of  Warner,  N.  H.,  in  his  biographical  sketches  of 
the  Bartlett  family,  says,  "  During  the  arbitrary  and  tyranni- 
cal government  of  Sir  Edmund  Andros,  Samuel  Bartlett  was 
a  very  active  and  zealous  partisan  ;  and,  when  affairs  were 
approaching  their  crisis,  he  mounted  his  horse,  and  set  out 
from  home  with  an  old  rusty  sword,  minus  a  scabbard,  and 
reached  Boston  in  season  to  assist  in  the  imprisonment  of 
Sir  Edmund."  He  was  one  of  the  founders  of  Queen  Anne's 
Chapel.  Re\-.  Matthias  Plant,  rector  (jf  the  parish  from 
1722  to  1753,  married  Lydia,  the  youngest  daughter  of 
Samuel  Bartlett.  In  the  church  records,  under  date  of  Oct. 
29,  1727,  in  the  handwriting  of  Mr.  Plant,  is  a  brief  account 
of  the  earthquake  which  contains  some  interesting  facts,  es- 
pecially a  statement  to  the  effect  that  "  the  very  first  shock 
opened  a  new  spring  by  my  father  Samuel  Bartlett's  house 
in  the  meadow."  This  spring  now  furnishes  the  water  supply 
for  the  city  of  Newburyport.  Samuel  Bartlett  died  May  15, 
1732,  aged  eighty-seven,  and  was  buried  in  the  churchyard 
connected  with  Queen  Anne's  Chapel,  now  a  part  of  the 
Belleville  Cemetery.  On  his  tombstone  is  an  inscription, 
which  states  that  "  He  was  one  of  the  first  founders  of  this 
church." 

His  brother  Richard,  born  Feb  21,  1649,  married  Hannah 
Emery  Nov.  18,  1673.  There  were  nine  children,  seven 
sons  and  two  daughters,  by  this  marriage.  One  of  the 
sons,  Joseph,  was  drafted,  and  sent  to  Haverhill  to  defend 
that  town  from  the  attack  of  Indians  in  1708.  He  was  capt- 
ured, and  carried  to  Canada,  where  he  remained  a  prisoner 
for  more  than  four  years.  Another  son,  Stephen,  was  the 
father  of  Hon.  Josiah  Bartlett,  one  of  the  signers  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence. 

John  Bartlett,  son  of  Richard  Bartlett,  Jr.,  and  brother  of 
Samuel  and  the  above-named  Richard,  was  born  June  22, 
1655,  "^"^^  married  Mary  Rust  Oct.  29,  1680.  He  learned 
the  trade  of  tanner,  and  established  himself  in  business  at 
l^artlett's    Cove.      P"or    several    g^enerations     the    tannins:    of 


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BART  LETT'S    COVE  239 

hides  was  continued  on  the  same  spot,  and  traces  of  the  old 
vats  can  still  be  seen.  Ship-building  was  also  established 
there   at   a  very   early   date. 

Until  quite  recently  there  was  no  causeway  or  embank- 
ment along  the  Newbury  shore.  Small  boats  and  fishing 
craft  could  easily  enter  the  Cove  from  the  river,  and  the 
tide  ebbed  and  flowed  in  the  basin  that  now  forms  the  reser- 
voir of  the  Newburyport  water  supply. 

Under  date  of  March  10,  1761,  Coffin,  in  his  History  of 
Newbury,  says  "  a  ferry  was  granted  from  Newbury  to  Salis- 
bury about  the  middle  of  Bartlett's  Cove  "  ;  but,  evidently,  the 
court  held  at  Ipswich  and  Salem  did  not  confirm  this  grant, 
as  will  appear  from  the  following  papers  now  on  file  in  the 
office  of  the  clerk  of  courts  at   Salem  :  — 

To  the  Honbie  His  Majestys  Justices  of  the  Court  of  Quarter  Sessions 
to  be  holden  at  Ipswich,  March  y^'  31,  1761. 

The  Petition  of  sundry  Persons  whose  ||  Names  ||  are  hereunto  sub- 
scrib'^  Inhabitants  principally  of  the  Towns  of  Newbury  &  SaUsbury  in 
the  County  of  Essex  in  the  Province  of  the  Massachus"^  Bay  in  New 
England,  Humbly  sheweth 

That  we  apprehend  a  Ferry  is  much  needed  &  will  greatly  serve  the 
publick.  over  Merrimack  River  from  a  little  below  the  House  of  Mr. 
Joseph  Page  in  Salisbury  to  about  the  middle  of  Bartlets  Cove  so  call'i 
in  Newbury. 

First,  Because  this  appears  to  us  an  exceeding  good  Place  to  keep 
a  Ferry,  having  remarkable  Eddys  on  both  sides,  which  make  half  y'' 
River  &  being  so  Land-lock''  as  to  be  very  expos'^  to  any  wind  that 
blows;  &  the  Land  so  scitvated  on  both  Sides  that  Persons  may  be 
seen  near  three  quarters  of  a  mile  before  they  come  to  it. 

2.  It  will  shorten  y*"  way  in  travelling  thro  the  Country  a  mile  even 
were  there  a  Bridge  erected  over  Po —  River,  which  yet  is  not  done  & 
tis  quite  uncertain  when  it  will.  And  will  save  3  or  4  Miles  at  present 
of  very  bad  way,  unless  Amesbury  Ferry  Boat  comes  to  Salisbury 
Point,  which  sometimes  cannot  be  done,  &  often  not  without  Difficulty, 
&  which  none  can  oblige  the  Ferrymen  to  &  they  often  refuse. 

3.  The  Town  of  Newbury  has  no  Ferry  between  that  at  Toiun  & 
Swctts,  which  is  8  or  9  miles ;  nor  Salisbury  any  within  about  6  miles 
of  this  place. 

4.  They  can  very  often  pass  here  with  Safety  when  they  cannot  pass 


2  40  Ori.D    NEWLUKY 

at  cither  t)t  the  other  two  Fcrrys  without  nnicli  Difficulty  iS;  Danger 
especially  in  a  Southwesterly  wind,  when  here  its  perfectly  calm:  and 
sometimes  when  both  the  other  Ferrys  are  impassable,  the  lo7ccr  by 
reason  of  y  winds.  .S:  the  upper  h\  reason  of  the  rotten  Ice  which  often 
lies  near  a  month  longer  at  Amesbury  Ferry  than  at  this  place. 

And  inasmuch  as  the  s'^  Towns  of  Newbury  and  Salisbury  have  sig- 
nify' their  Approbation  ||  of  s''  Ferry  ||  &  made  Grants  of  their  respec- 
tive Priviledges  in  the  same,  as  by  their  \'otes  to  be  produc''  to  your 
Honours  may  appear, 

We  therefore  humbly  pray,  if  your  Honours  in  your  wisdom  shall  see 
fit.  that  s''  Ferry  may  be  granted  and  contirm''  for  ever.  And  your  Peti- 
tioners as  in  duty  bound  sliall  ever  ])ray,  &c  : 

Jxo  New.m.a..\.  Kdmlnd  Baktlktt. 

Joseph   Ste\kxs,  \Villi.\.m   Davenport, 

Joseph  Cottle.  Da\io  Jack.ma.x. 

William  Currier.  Enoch   Merrill, 

John  Currier.  Sam'-i-  Bartlett. 

N.\THANiEL   Dole.  John   Stone. 

Sa.muel  Swett.  Tho^  Bartlett. 
And  manv  others. 

To  tliis  petition  Hiimphre\'  Currier  made  the  following 
remonstrance  :  — 

To  tile  Hon"'  Court  of  (Juarter  Sessions  of  y>^^  Peace  to  be  holden  at 
Ipswich  within  and  for  the  County  of  Essex  on  the  last  Tuesdav  of 
March  ciurant 

The  Petition  of  Humphrey  Currier  Humblv  .Sliews  That  Having 
very  lateh'  heard  that  .Some  persons  \'iz  one  Thomas  Bartlett  and 
Others  are  design'd  to  Apply  to  this  Court  for  a  Ferry  to  be  Kept  over 
Merrimack  River  between  the  Towns  of  Newbury  and  Salisburv  a 
little  below  .Almsburv-  Ferr\-  from  Bartlets  Co\'e  to  (iunners  Point  so 
called — He  has  to  Object  Thereto     - 

P'irst,  That  the  Town  of  Salisburw  under  whonie  .Some  of  tiie  Peti- 
tioners apply.  Have  no  Right  to  (irant  any  Priviledge  of  a  Ferry  any- 
where over  .Said  River,  Their  Right  being  Civen  or  Conveyed  to  George 
Carr  many  years  agoe.  Whose  Heirs  now  Claim  tiiat  priviledge  which 
your  petitioner  .\p])rehends  he  can  Make  apjjear  liad  he  opportunitv. 

2i>  That  tile  (Irani  ot  a  Ferry  in  the  ]jlace  i)roposed  would  (ireatlv 
Injure  the  Ferry  below.  And  your  Petit'  especially  whose  interest  Ives  in 
the  Ferry  at  .\lmsbury.  who  flatters  himself  this  Hon"'  Court  would  not 
do  anything  to  the  |)rejudice  of  y'  Ferry,  already  .Statetl  where  the  Pub- 
lick  Advantage  will  not  Counterxail  the  Damage  which  will  accrue 
thcrebv. 


BARTLETT'S   COVE  241 

3  Your  Petit'-  apprehends  that  he  can  make  it  appear  that  a  ferry 
being  kept  in  the  place  he  has  heard  is  proposed,  will  all  things 
Considered  be  rather  a  Damage  than  Benefit.  Therefore  prays  for  the 
Reasons  offered  this  Hon"i  Court  would  either  not  Act  upon  this  affair 
at  present  or  Continue  the  Same  Untill  Their  Petitioner  has  proper  time 
to  lay,  what  he  has  Justly  further  to  offer,  Before  your  Hon'^\  And 
vour  Petif  as  in  Duty  bound  Shall  ever  pray,  &c. 

HUMPHERY     CURKIKK. 
Almsburv,    Mar:    30"'  1761. 

At  the  Court  of  General  Sessions  held  at  Ipswich  March, 
I  76 1,  the  following  order  was  entered  upon  the  records:  — 

On  Reading  the  Petition  of  Edmund  Bartlett  &  others  Praying  for 
another  ferry  on  merrimack  River  as  by  the  s'^  Petition  on  file  —  Ordered 
that  Col"  Choate,  Col"  Appleton  &  Col"  Rogers  be  a  Committee  to  in- 
quire into  the  Conveniency  &  Necessity  thereof  &  how  it  will  Effect  the 
Neighboring  Ferrys  there  and  to  inquire  into  the  Title  of  the  same 
ferrys  and  the  conduct  of  the  ferrymen,  and  make  Report  at  the  next 
Term  and  all  at  the  Charge  of  the  Petitioners. 

At  the  next  term  of  the  court  the  committee  reported  as 
follows  :  — 

The  Committee  apointed  on  the  Petition  of  Edmund  Bartlett  and 
others  praying  for  l|a||  ferry  across  merr||m||ck  River  from  a  litle  below 
the  house  of  ||  Joseph  Page||  in  Salisbery  to  about  the  midle  of  Bartletts 
Cove  in  Newbery,  and  allso  to  inquire  how  it  will  Effect  the  other  fereys. 
in  that  neighbourhood,  allso  into  the  title  of  those  fereys  and  how  the 
ferey  men  behave.  First  giving  notice  to  the  Selectmen  of  both  towns 
and  others  Consernd  we  have  attended  that  Service,  heard  the  partys, 
and  begg  leave  to  Report  the  following  facts,  viz  : 

That  by  an  ancient  petition  one  ||  George ||  Carr  preferred  to  the  gen- 
erall  Court  many  years  Past  Relating  to  the  propertie  he  had  in  keeping 
fereys  from  the  mouth  of  mermack  River  so  fare  vp  as  Holts  Rocks  we 
perceived  that  ||  he  Claimed  a  right  in  &  ||  title  to  keep  all  ||  Ferrys 
within  those  Limitts,  but  ||  his  grant  we  Could  gett  no  knoledge  of.  but 
ware  informd  that  all  the  farey  in  that  space  are  held  under  his  title, 
and  think  that  if  a  ferey  was  granted  in  the  place  petitioned  for  it  ought 
to  be  done  with  Refrence  to  that  titles  if  any  such  there  be. 

With  Respect  to  the  behaveour  of  the  present  ferry  men  we  heard  no 
Complant  Except  y^  the  keeper  at  Amsbery  ferry  dont  give  the  Same 
attendance  at  Salisbery  Point  as  he  dose  at  Amsberey  Shore. 

With   Regard  to   the  publick   Nesestie  and  Convenence  of  a  ferey  at 


2  42  OULD   XEWBURY 

the  place  petetioiid  for.  we  tind  it  would  as  things  are  now  Surcum- 
stances  very  nnicli  aComodate  travlers  at  Certain  sesons  of  the  year 
and  Especally  in  sum  sorts  of  wether  when  the  pasing  at  the  other 
ferays  are  thareby  made  dilicult.  Tho  we  find  the  place  proposed  not 
well  aComodated  with  a  good  landing  on  the  west  Side  and  Sumthing 
dangrous  from  Sunken  Rocks  that  lay  a  litle  below  the  pasage  way. 
But  the  Committee  are  apprehencive  that  if  a  fferey  is  granted  and  keept 
at  this  place  at  present  it  might  so  lessen  and  divide  the  pasangers  to 
each  boat  or  without  a  large ||r  ||  fare  then  they  are  now  alowed  to  take 
II  it  II  would  disorage  and  prevent  a  cherfull  and  good  atandance  at  all 
of  them.  And  that  if  a  bridge  was  bult  oure  Powwaa  River  from  Ams- 
bery  to  Salsbery  Point  it  migh[t]  well  answer  all  the  Ends  of  a  ferey 
whare  it  is  now  Prayd  for.  and  we  ware  told  by  Severil  Gentilmen  of 
Credet  that  they  Poposed  to  go  about  bulding  said  bridge  this  Sumer. 
and  did  not  much  doubt  but  it  would  be  done. 

One  the  whole  we  Report  it  as  our  opinion  that  any  further  proseed- 
ings  about  the  proposed  new  ferey  Idc  deffered  for  twelve  months  to 
come,  and  that  in  the  mean  spaece  the  ferry  man  at  amsbery  ferey  atend 
people  too  and  from  Sallsbery  poind  in  the  same  manner  as  he  dos  those 
at  Amsberey  shore,  giveing  the  prefferanc  to  him  that  comes  tirst  to  be 
Cared  over  at  all  times  when  the  wether  will  permettee.  and  that  the  s'' 
fereymen  be  allowed  to  take  one  qvarter  more  for  his  Carring  Pasan- 
gers. hoses  or  goods  to  and  from  S''  Salsbury  point  then  he  is  now 
allowd  at  amsbery  Shore,  all  which  is  Submitted  By 

(  per  order  of  v^' 
John  Lhoate  -.'  ^. 

(  Committee. 

The  court  issued  the  following"  decree  :  — 

July.  1761,  on  Reading  again  the  Petition  of  Edmund  Bartlet  >S: 
others  for  an  other  ferry  over  ^lerrymack  River  with  the  Report  of  the 
Committee  appointed  at  the  last  Term  to  inquire  into  that  matter.  .  .  . 
It  is  thereupon  Ordered  that  the  Said  Report  be  accepted  and  that  all 
further  Proceedings  ab'  the  s^'  Ferry  be  Deferred  accordinglv.  And  that 
the  Ferry  men  at  Amesbury  ferry  be  allowed  to  take  one  Quarter  more 
for  his  attendance  at  Salislaury  point  as  menf'  in  s''  Report. 

A  plan  showing  the  location  of  the  proposed  ferry  was  pre- 
pared !))•  order  of  the  petitioners  and  presented,  with  other 
l)ai)ers,  at  the  July  term  of  the  court.  This  j^lan  is  on  file 
in  the  office  of  the  county  comniissit)ners  at  Salem.  It  will 
be  noticed,  in  the  cop\-  on  page  238,  that  the  road  along 
the   Salisbury   shore,  from    Deer    island  to  the  mouth  of   the 


BAKTLETrS    COVE  243 

Powow   River,  is  not  marked  or  designated  in  any  way,  and 
was  not  probably  in  existence  at  that  time. 

Another  petition  was  presented  at  the  Court  of  General 
Sessions  held  at  Ipswich  in  March,  1771,  and  the  following 
order  entered  upon  the  records  :  — 

On  Reading  the  Petition  of  Joseph  Page  &  others  shewing  that  they 
have  obtained  the  Approbation  of  the  Towns  of  Salisbury  &  Xewbury 
for  a  Ferry  over  Merrimack  River  a  little  above  a  Place  called  Gunners' 
Point,  on  Condition  of  Licence  from  this  Court,  &c.,  as  by  s'^  Petition  on 
File,  &  praying  this  Court  to  grant  them  such  Licence,  Ordered,  that 
the  s'^  Petitioners  serve  Humphry  Currier,  Richard  Carr  &  James  Carr 
with  a  Copy  of  said  Petition.  &  notify  them  to  appear  at  the  next  Term, 
to  shew  Cause,  if  any  they  have,  why  the  Prayer  thereof  should  not  be 
granted. 

Evidently,  some  agreement  was  reached  by  the  friends  and 
opponents  of  the  proposed  new  ferry  ;  and  no  further  action 
was  taken  until  1789,  when  Joseph  Swasey,  of  Newburyport, 
and  John  Webster,  of  Salisbury,  presented  the  following 
petition  :  - — 

To  the  Hon^"  the  Justices  of  the  Court  of  General  Sessions  of  the 
Peace  to  be  holden  at  Salem  within  and  for  the  County  of  Essex  on 
the  second  Tuesday  of  July.  Anno  Domini  1789: 

Your  petitioners  believe  that  it  would  be  of  very  extensive  convenience 
and  utility  to  the  citizens  of  this  Commonwealth  and  others  travelling 
from  the  southern  and  western  parts  of  this  Commonwealth  into  New 
Hampshire  or  the  country  east  thereof,  or  passing  the  contrary  route, 
that  a  ferry  should  be  established  over  Merrimack  River,  at  or  near 
Jonathan  Moulton's  dwelling  house  in  Newbury  in  said  County,  and 
from  thence  to  the  opposite  side  in  Salisbury  aforesaid. 

That  the  said  ferry's  being  thus  established  would  save  to  travellers 
passing  that  way  a  circuitous  route  of  nearly  one  mile  through  a  very 
bad  piece  of  two  rod  road  which  is  generally  and  necessarily  encum- 
bered, for  the  greater  part  of  it,  with  heaps  of  ship  timber  and  plank, 
there  being  no  less  than  six  or  seven  shipyards  adjoining  said  road,  by 
means  whereof,  and  of  the  business  and  labor  done  therein,  the  said 
road  is  frequently  rendered  almost  impassible,  and  horses  often 
frightened  to  such  a  degree  as  to  endanger  the  lives  of  their  riders. 

That  the  bridge  in  said  road  across  the  mouth  of  the  Powow  river  is 
often  out  of  repair,  sometimes  drawn  up  to  admit  vessels  to  pass,  and  at 
all  times  inconvenient  and  even  dancrerous  for  horses  and  carriages. 


2  44  OULD    A-EWBURY 

That  the  liill  on  the  Xewluuy  side  of  Amesbury  ferry  is  very  steep 
and  in  the  winter  season  so  covered  with  ice  as  to  render  it  ahiiost  im- 
possible to  ascend  it  witli  carriages  and  teams,  and  hazardous  to  de- 
scend it  at  that  season. 

^'our  Petitioners  furtlier  show  that  they  are  the  proprietors  of  the 
huul  on  each  side  of  tlie  river  where  the  Ferry  is  prayed  to  be  estab- 
hshed  ;  that  they  will  at  their  own  cost  immediately  open  a  three  rod 
way  from  the  road  leading  to  Amesbury  Ferry  through  the  land  of  the 
late  Mrs.  Barrett  and  put  the  same  in  good  repair;  that  on  the  Salis- 
bury side  there  is  a  convenient  landing  place  directly  where  the  main 
post  road  from  P^xeter,  Portsmouth  and  the  eastern  country  now  falls 
into  the  river  road  at  Salisbury  Point,  and  that  your  Petitioners  are 
readv  to  give  bond  with  sufficient  security  for  the  faithful  discharge  of 
their  trust  and  that  there  shall  be  constant  attendance  given  with  two 
good  boats,  one  whereof  shall  be  kept  on  each  side  of  the  river. 

Wherefore  your  Petitioners  humbly  pray  your  Honors  that  they  may 
be  licensed  to  keep  a  Ferry  at  the  above  described  place. 

And  as  in  duty  bound  shall  ever  pray,  &c. 

Joseph   Sw.\sev. 
John  Wkhstkk. 

The  court  "ordered  that  the  Hon'ble  Stephen  Choate,  Ksq., 
John  Patch,  Esq.,  and  John  Choate,  E.sq.,  be  a  Committee  to 
enquire  into  the  necessity  and  conveniency  of  said  ferry,  and 
they  are  to  notify  the  inhabitants  of  the  towns  of  Newbury, 
Salisbury,  and  Amesbury  and  the  present  occupiers  of  Ames- 
bury ferry  of  the  time  they  shall  appoint  for  viewing"  the  ferry 
pra)'d  for  and  making  the  enquiry  aforesaid,  and  they  are  to 
report  as  soon  as  ma)'  be." 

At  the  ne.xt  term  of  the  court  held  at  Salem,  in  September, 
1789,  Theojihilus  Parsons  and  Theophilus  l^radbury,  att(M-ne)-s 
for  Daxid  Tu.xbur)',  of  Salisbiu"}',  and  his  wite  DorotliN',  in  her 
right,  Daniel  Ciu'rier,  Jr.,  and  Ezekiel  Cunier,  both  of  Ames- 
bury, jiroj^rietors  of  Amesbur}-  feri)-.  tiled  a  remonstrance,  in 
which  the)'  state  "that  they  and  their  predecessors  ha\e  been 
owners  of  .Amesbiu)'  lerr)'  lor  near!)'  one  hundred  \'ears,"  and 
that  the  proposed  new  feri)'  is  within  eight)'  rods  of  the  one 
already  established. 

The  coiu't,  liowe\ei",  granted  tlie  pi'a)cr  of  the  petitionei's  ; 
and  the  clerk  was  chi'ccted  to  entei'  ui)oii  thi.'  lecoi'ds  tlie 
followinu'  decree  :  — 


BARTLETTS    COVE  245 

On  reading  again  the  petition  of  Joseph  Swasey  and  John  Webster 
and  the  report  of  the  Committee  appointed  last  term  to  enquire  into  the 
necessity  and  convenience  of  said  ferry,  and  after  fully  hearing  the  peti- 
tion, it  is  considered,  adjudged,  and  ordered  by  the  Court  that  Joseph 
Swasey  and  John  Webster  be  licensed  to  keep  a  ferry  over  Merrimack 
River  at  or  near  Jonathan  Moulton's  dwelling  house  in  Newbury  in  said 
county  and  from  thence  to  the  opposite  side  of  said  river  in  Salisbury, 
in  said  county,  agreeable  to  the  prayer  of  said  petition,  and  that  a  ferry 
be  there  established.  The  rates  of  ferriage  to  be  the  same  as  at  Ames- 
bury  ferry,  and  the  said  Swasey  and  Webster  are  to  keep  two  boats, 
one  on  each  side  of  said  river  agreeable  to  said  petition. 

When  Washingtun  visited  Newburyport,  Oct.  30,  1789, 
he  \va.s  taken  the  ne.xt.  morning  over  thi.s  new  ferry  to  the 
Salisbury  shore  in  a  barge  specially  prepared  for  the  occa- 
sion, and  escorted  as  far  as  the  boundary  line  of  the  State 
on  his  way  to  New  Hampshire. 

Two  years  later  active  efforts  were  made  by  some  of  the 
inhabitants  of  Newburyport  for  the  incorporation  of  the  Essex- 
Merrimack  Bridge  Company,  and  John  Webster  sent  to  the 
General  Court  the  following  remonstrance  now  on  file  at  the 
State  House  in  Boston  :  — 

Salisbury.  Jan^  i2">  1792. 

The   honourable  the   Senate,   and  the  honourable  the  house  of   Repre- 
sentatives of  the  Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts. 

The  Petition  of  John  Webster  of  Salisbury  humbly  sheweth  That 
in  the  year  1789  he,  in  conjunction  with  Joseph  Sweazy  of  Newbury- 
Port,  had  liberty  granted  them  in  legal  forms  to  keep  a  Ferry  over 
Merrimac  River,  at  Websters-Point,  commonly  called  the  new  or  middle 
Ferry :  Which  has  been  kept  accordingly,  to  the  satisfaction  of  y 
public. 

And  whereas  a  Bridge  is  petition^'  for  a  little  below,  which,  if 
granted,  it  is  suppos'^  will  annialate  said  Ferry.  Though  it  is  almost 
taken  for  granted  that  such  a  great  obstruction  in  such  a  River,  so  in- 
jurious to  all  the  numerous  Towns,  which  lye  upon  or  near  it,  in  this 
State  &  New-hampshire,  will  never  by  your  Wisdom  be  allow'', —  yet  to 
guard  as  well  as  I  can  against  all  events, —  I  would  observe  to  your 
Honours  that  my  expense  has  been  very  great  in  procuring  &  making 
Roads  &-=  toays  at  the  landings,  both  sides  of  the  River,  &  Boats  for  the 
convenience  of  all  sorts  of  Passengers,  with  their  Carriages  of  every 
Kind,  not  less  than  three  hundred  pounds,  besides  all  my  trouble.  & 
turning  me  out  of  mv  Channel  of  Business. 


246  OCLD    XKlVnCRY 

And  that  1  have  enjoyed  it  so  little  while,  as  to  have  had  no  profit  by 
it  as  vet:  lUit  am  still  saddled  with  a  heavy  load  on  this  account.  All 
which  1  lio])''  in  time  might  lie  refunded  with  interest :  But  if  taken 
from  me  <\:  given  to  others,  without  a  full  comj^ensation.  will  he  esteem'' 
\erv  grievous. 

.And  when  your  Honours  consider  the  past  expense  &  my  reasonable 
future  prosperity,  by  the  growing  of  y  country.  I  must  pray  that — in 
case  said  bridge  is  allowed  to  be  built  —  such  compensation  mav  be 
made,  as  in  vour  Wisdom  shall  seem  fit.  Which  I  trust  cannot  be  small. 

And  as  in  duty  bound  shall  ever  pray.  cS:c. 

John  Wehster. 

Notwilh.standing  this  remon.strancc  an  act  of  incorporation 
was  granted  Feb.  24,  1792,  as  will  be  seen  by  reference  to 
the  sketch  descriptive  of  the  Esse.x-Merrimack  Bridge. 

The  eighth  section  of  the  act  of  incorporation  provides  for 
the  pa}'ment  of  certain  specified  claims,  as  follows  :  — 

Within  one  year  after  the  said  bridge  shall  be  opened  for  passengers 
the  Proprietors  of  said  bridge  shall  pa}'  to  John  Webster  and  Joseph 
Swasey  and  also  to  the  town  of  Salisbury  all  such  sums  of  monev  as 
shall  l)e  respectivelv  awarded  to  them  or  either  of  them  bv  three  indiffer- 
ent men.  mutually  chosen  by  the  parties,  as  a  full  compensation  for  anv 
injury  sustained  by  them  respectively  by  the  erecting  of  said  bridge. 


SAMUEL  SEWALL, 

Chief  Justice  of  the  Province  of  Massachusetts  Bay. 


Henry  Sewall,  born  April  8,  1576,  in  Coventry,  England, 
married  Anne  Hunt.  He  sent  his  son  Henry  to  New 
England  in  1634,  and  shortly  after  came  over  himself.  He 
lived  awhile  in  Newbury  near  the  Lower  Green  ;  but,  when 
the  meeting-house  was  removed  to  the  new  town  in  1646,  he 
sold  his  house  and  land,  and  removed  to  Rowley,  where  he 
died  and  was  buried  in  March,  1656-7. 

Rev.  Samuel  Sewall,  of  Burlington,  Mass.,  has  given  a 
full  and  interesting  account  of  the  Sewall  family  in  a  paper 
contributed  to  the  American  Quarterly  Register  for  Februar)', 
1 841.  The  dates  and  facts  embodied  in  this  brief  sketch  are 
taken  mainly  from  that  paper,  and  from  the  diary  of  Samuel 
Sewall,  published  by  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society. 

Henry  Sewall,  Jr.,  son  of  the  first  mentioned  Henry 
Sewall,  was  born  in  Coventry,  England,  in  16 14.  He  came 
to  New  England  in  1634,  bringing  with  him  English  ser- 
vants, neat  cattle,  and  provisions.  He  was  in  Ipswich 
through  the  winter,  and  in  1635  removed  to  Newbury.  He 
was  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  the  town,  and  was  granted  by 
the  proprietors  over  six  hundred  acres  of  marsh  and  upland  as 
his  proportion,  according  to  the  rule  agreed  upon  in  London. 
He  went  on  foot,  with  others,  to  Cambridge  in  May,  1637, 
and  was  made  a  freeman,  in  order  that  he  might  strengthen 
the  friends  of  Governor  Winthrop  against  Sir  Henry  Vane. 

March  25,  1646,  he  married  Miss  Jane  Dummer,  eldest 
child  of  Stephen  and  Alice  Dummer,  of  Newbury,  and  soon 
after  went  to  England  with  them,  where  he  remained  se\-eral 
years.      He  had  five  children  born  in  that  country,      hi  1650, 


248  OULD    XEWBUKY 

he  returned  to  Xew  I\ni;iand  alone  ;  and  August  5th  of  that 
year  he  bouglit  of  Kdward  Woodman,  of  Newbury,  forty  acres 
of  upland,  with  house  and  barn  thereon,  situate  in  Newbury, 
and  "bounded  with  ye  land  of  AT  lulward  Rawson  &  John 
Pemberton  on  the  northwest,  y  common  on  y  southwest, 
next  to  the  swamp  commonly  called  the  Aspen  Swamp,  also 
y'  street  goiui;'  down  to  .AsjK'n  Swamp  on  the  southeast  side, 
and  ten  acres  of  meadow  .  .  .  on  Merrimack  River  in  New- 
bury aforesaid,  bounded  with  the  upland  of  Air.  Rawson  on 
the  south  &  on  the  east,  on  the  west  bounded  by  a  creek 
comini;'  out  of  Merrimack  river";  also  twenty  acres  of  salt 
marsh,  bought  of  Mr.  Richard  Uummer  ;  also  twenty  acres 
more  of  marsh  in  Newbury  toward  Plum  Island  Ri\-er  (Ips- 
wich Deeds,  book  i,  page  6"^  (212). 

The  f(.)rty  acres  of  upland,  with  house  and  barn  thereon, 
was  on  the  westerly  side  of  Toppan's  Lane,  and  extended 
to  High  Street,  as  will  be  seen  by  reference  to  the  following 
items  from  the  will  of  I  lenry  Sewall,  dated  April  17,  1678, 
and  proved  May  24,  1700  :  — 

I  give  to  my  sonne  in  law  Jacob  Topan  and  my  daughter  Hannali 
Topan,  his  wife,  si.xteen  acres  of  land,  be  it  more  or  less,  whereon  his 
house  now  standeth  according  as  it  lyes  allready  bounded,  being  a  part 
of  the  forty  acres  purchased  of  M""  Woodman,  during  their  natural  lives. 

To  son  John  Seawall  house,  barne,  and  land,  24  acres  formerly  pur- 
chased of  AP  Woodman,  which  I  lately  lived  in  and  now  my  said  son 
John  liveth  in  for  his  life  ;  also  20  acres  salt  marsh  next  ox  common  I 
purchased  of  AF  Woodman,  also  use  of  12  acres  of  fresh  meadow  pur- 
chased of  George  Little  :  the  remainder  of  my  estate  to  the  heirs  of  my 
body,  and  in  case  of  failure  of  issue  to  mv  grandson,  .Samuel  Toppan. 
second  son  of  my  daughter,  flannah  Toppan. 

It  is  [)robable  that  Henry  Sewall  occupied  the  house  in 
Woodman's  Lane,  as  it  was  then  called,  tor  a  year  or  two, 
and  then  retiu"ned  to  ICngland.  He  came  again  to  Newbury 
in  1659,  and  afterward  sent  for  his  wife  and  family.  They 
arrived  in  1661.  Meanwhile  he  puichased,  No\-.  7,  1660,  of 
John  IJrowiK',  of  Newbur)',  glazier,  a  house  with  tour  acres 
of  land  in  Newbury,  formerl\-  owned  b)-  Ilenr\'  Travers, 
"bounded  with  the  streets  on  the  south  and  east,  the  land  of 


S.-l MUKL   SE IV A  LL 


249 


Richard  Browne  on  the  west,  and  Tristram  Coffin's  land  on 
y  north,"  also  shop  and  new  shop  lately  built  and  floored 
(Ipswich  Deeds,  book  2,  paj^e  16  (28). 

This  lot  of  land  was  on  the  northerly  corner  of  Parker 
Street  and  the  country  road,  now  High  Street.  Henry 
Sewall,  with  his  family,  resided  in  the  old  house  several 
years.  He  afterward  built  on  the  northwesterly  end  of  this 
land  on  Parker  Street  a  new  house  a  few  rods  from  the 
residence  of  Rev.  James  Noyes  and  Rev.  Thomas  Parker. 
There  he  lived  for  many  years  ;  and  there  he  died  May  16, 
1700,  aged  eighty-six.  He  was  buried  in  the  graveyard  near 
the  Upper  Green  in  Newbury.  The  stone  that  marks  his  last 
resting-place  bears  the  following  inscription  :  — 


250  ■  OULD    NEWBURY 

Mr.  Henr\-  Sewall  (sent  by  Mr.  Henry  Sewall.  his  father,  in  v^  ship 
Elsabeth  &  Dorcas  Cap'  Watts,  commander)  arrived  at  Boston  1634. 
winterd  at  Ipswich,  helpd  begin  this  plantation  1635.  furnishing  English 
servant",  neat  cattel,  &  provisions.  Married  Mr"  Jane  Dummer.  March 
y«  25.  1646.  died  May.  y^  16.  1700.  /Etat  86.  His  frutfull  vine  being 
thus  disjoind.  fell  to  y  ground  January  y  [3  following.  .-Etat  74. 
Psal.  27  :  10. 


In  the  diary  of  Samuel  Sewall,  under  date  of  i\Iay  17.  1700, 
is  the  following  entry  :  — 

l>enj.  Moss  jun''  is  sent  to  me  to  acquaint  me  that  my  dear  P\-\ther 
died  the  evening  before.  May  18"'  ride  to  Newbury  in  the  Rain:  when 
breaks  up.  Bro''  and  Sister  come  from  Salem.  Bury  mv  Father. 
Bearers.  Col.  Peirce.  Mr.  Xich.  Xoves.  Mr.  .Sam.  Plumer.  Mr.  Tristram 
Coffin,  Major  Danl.  Davison.  Major  Thomas  Xoyes.  had  S  under- 
bearers. 

Sabbath.  May  [9.  Mr.  Tapan  in  the  afternoon  preach"d  a  funeral 
Sermon  from  Prov.  19.  20,     Said  my  Father  was  a  true  Nathanael. 

Rev.  Christopher  Toppan,  D.  D.,  was  pastor  of  the  First 
Church  in  Newbury,  having  been  ordained  Sept.  9,  1696. 

The  early  New  England  settlers  did  not  consider  religious 
e.xercises  or  ceremonies  necessary  or  even  desirable  at  a 
funeral.  They  carried  their  kindred  or  friends  solemnly  and 
reverently  to  the  burial-place,  and  stood  silently  by  while  the 
grave  was  filled.  They  could  not  encourage  or  assist  in  a 
service  that  seemed  to  confirm  "the  popish  error  that  prayer 
is  to  be  used  over  the  dead  or  for  the  dead." 

Ne\-ertheless,  Samuel  Sewall,  in  his  diary,  gi\es  the  sub- 
stance of  a  tender  and  touching  address  delixered  at  the 
grave  of  his  mother,  that  exidently  came  from  a  heart  over- 
flowing with  kindness  and  affection.  His  account  of  her 
death  and  burial  reads  as  follows:  — 

Janry  14"' iXg^?  Having  been  certified  last  night  about  10.  oclock  of 
the  death  of  my  dear  Mother  at  Xewlnuy.  Sam.  and  I  set  out  with  John 
Sewall.  the  Messenger,  for  that  place.  Hired  horses  at  Charlestown  : 
set  out  about  10  oclock  in  a  great  Fogg.  Dined  at  Lewis's  with  .Mr. 
Gushing  of  Salisbury.  Sam  and  I  kept  on  in  Ipswich  Rode.  John  went 
to   accompany   Bro''  from    Salem.      .About    Mr.    Hubbard"s   in    Ipswicii 


SAMUEL   SEW  ALL  251 

farms,  they  overtook  us.  Sam.  and  I  lodged  at  Compton's  in  Ipswich. 
Bro'' and  John  stood  on  for  Newbury  by  Moonshine.  Jan-^  15"!  Sam 
and  I  set  forward.  Brother  Northend  meets  us.  Visit  Aunt  Northend. 
Mr.  Payson.  With  Bro''  and  sister  we  set  forward  for  Newbury  :  where 
we  find  that  day  apiointed  for  the  F'uneral :  twas  a  very  pleasant  Com- 
fortable day. 

Bearers,  Jno  Kent  of  the  Island,  L'  Cutting  Noyes,  Deacon  William 
Noyes,  Mr.  Peter  Tappan,  Capt.  Henry  Somersby,  Mr.  Joseph  Wood- 
bridge. 

I  followed  the  Bier  single.  Then  Bro''  Sewall  and  sister  Jane,  Bro' 
Short  and  his  wife,  Bro''  Moodey  and  his  wife,  Bro''  Northend  and  his 
wife,  Bro''  Tapan  and  sister  Sewall,  Sam,  and  cous  Haiiah  Tapan,  Mr. 
Payson  of  Rowley,  Mr.  Clark,  Minister  of  Excester.  were  there,  Col. 
Peirce,  Major  Noyes,  &c.,  Cous  John.  Richard  and  Betty  Dumer.  Went 
abt  4  P.M.      Nathan!   Brickett   taking   in  hand   to  fill  the   Grave,  I  said. 

Forbear  a  little,  and  suffer  me  to  say  that  amidst  our  bereaving  sorrows 
We  have  the  Comfort  of  beholding  this  Saint  put  into  the  rightfuU  pos- 
session of  that  Happiness  of  Living  desired  and  dying  Lamented.  She 
lived  comendably  Four  and  Fifty  years  with  her  dear  Husband,  and  my 
dear  Father  :  and  she  could  not  well  brook  the  being  divided  from  him 
at  her  death  :  which  is  the  cause  of  our  taking  leave  of  her  in  this  place. 
She  was  a  true  and  constant  Lover  of  God's  Word,  Worship  and  Saints  : 
And  she  always,  with  a  patient  cheerfulness,  submitted  to  the  divine 
Decree  of  providing  Bread  for  herself  and  others  in  the  sweat  of  her 
Brows.  And  now  her  infinitely  Gracious  and  Bountiful  Master  has 
promoted  her  to  the  Honor  of  higher  Employments,  fully  and  absolutely 
discharged  from  all  maher  of  Toil  and  Sweat.  My  honoured  and  be- 
loved Friends  and  Neighbours,  My  dear  Mother  never  thought  much  of 
doing  the  most  frecjuent  and  homely  ofiices  of  Love  for  me :  and 
lavish'd  away  many  Thousands  of  Words  upon  me,  before  I  could  re- 
turn one  word  in  Answer :  And  therefore  I  ask  and  hope  that  none  will 
be  offended  that  I  have  now  ventured  to  speak  one  word  in  her  behalf ; 
when  shee  herself  is  become  speechless. 

Made  a  Motion  with  my  hand  for  the  filling  of  the  Grave.  Note  : 
I  could  hardly  speak  for  passion  and  Tears.  Mr.  Tappan  prayed  with 
us  in  the  evening. 

The  will  of  Henry  Sewall,  on  file  at  the  Probate  Office  in 
Salem,  Mass.,  is  quite  long,  and  disposes  of  a  large  amount  of 
real  estate  and  personal  property  in  Newbury,  New  England, 
and  also  houses  and  lands  in  Hants,  Coventry,  and  Warwick 
counties,  England.      To  his  wife,  Jane  Sewall,  he  gives 


252  OULD   NEWBURY 

£\o  vearlv,  for  Hlt  life,  by  mv  son.  .Samuel  .Seawall,  and  the  rent  of 
the  farm  in  the  occupation  of  Joseph  (ioodridge,  containing  about  105 
acres,  during  her  widowhood,  also  the  house  new  built  wc''  now  I  dwell 
in.  with  \^  acres  lying  below  the  hill,  and  the  barn,  orchard.  lKic. 
for  her  life :  also  the  u.se  of  2  acres  of  salt  marsh,  part  of  the  20 
acres  purchased  of  M'  Woodman:  »S:  2  acres  of  .Meadow,  part  of  the  12 
acres  purchased  of  (ieorge  Little  in  birchen  meadow. 

Allso  I  give  to  my  sayd  sonne  Stephen,  during  his  natural!  life,  two 
acres  &  an  halfe  of  land  (after  the  acre  &  halfe  lying  to  my  now  dwell- 
ing house  t.^  above  disposed  of  is  measured  out),  be  it  more  or  less.  .  .  . 
after  him  to  his  heire  or  heirs  of  his  body  begotten  or  to  be  begotten.  & 
for  want  of  such  issue  to  my  sonne  John  .Seawall,  his  heires  &  Assigns 
for  ever. 

To  son  Samuel  .Seawall  the  house,  barn.  &  land  given  to  my  wife. 
after  her  decease,  and  also  houses  and  land  in  Coventry.  England,  evi- 
dences of  which  are  in  the  hands  of  Mr.  Tukky  of  Warwick. 

Samuel  Sewall  was  the  eldest  son  of  Henry  and  Jane 
Dumnier  Sewall.  He  was  born  at  Bishop  Stoke,  Hampshire, 
England,  March  28,  1652.  He  came  to  Newbury,  New 
England,  \\\th  his  mother  in  1661,  and  was  placed  under  the 
tuition  oi  Rev.  Thomas  Parker,  with  whom  he  continued  six 
years,  until  his  admission  to  Harvard  College.  He  graduated 
in  1 67 1,  and  received  the  degree  of  Master  of  Arts  in  1674. 
He  was  married  Feb.  25,  1675-6,  by  Governor  Bradstreet, 
to  Miss  Hannah  Hull,  daughter  and  sole  heir  of  John  Hull, 
I'^scj.,  a  goldsmith  and  merchant  of  l^oston.  In  1652,  and  for 
several  years  afterward,  Mr.  Hull  was  master  of  the  mint  in 
the  colony.  He  coined  the  celebrated  New  England  six- 
pences and  shillings,  and  acquired  great  wealth. 

Samuel  Sewall  was  chosen  one  of  the  assistants  of  the 
council  in  1684,  1685,  and  1686.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Boston  Artillery  Company,  and  was  elected  captain  in  Ma\-, 
1686.  In  his  (liar)-,  under  date  of  June  11,  i6,S6,  he  wrote 
as  follows  :  — 

Waited  on  the  Council,  took  the  oath  of  allegiance  and  rec'd  mv  new 
commission  for  Capt.  Was  before  at  a  privat  Fast  at  Deacon  .Allen's: 
so  Capt.  Hr.tchinson  and  I  went  about  5  o'clock  and  all  the  rest  were 
sworn,  Capt.  Hutchinson  at  jM-esent  refuses.  I  read  the  Oath  nnself 
holding  the  book  in  my  Lett  hand,  and  holding  up  m\  Right  Hand  to 
1  leaven. 


SAMUEL    SEW  A  LI.  253 

The  editor  of  the  Diary,  in  a  foot-note,  says, 

This  matter  of  holding  up  the  hand  in  taking  an  oath,  as  opposed  to 
the  English  custom  of  holding  up  the  Bible  or  kissing  it,  became  very 
soon  one  of  the  trivial  but  irritating  cjuestions  in  dispute  between  the 
colonists  and  the  Andros  faction. 

Judge  Sewall  says,  under  date  of  April  25,  1688  :  — 

I  went  to  (lOV  Bradstreet  to  enquire  about  the  custom  of  swearing 
in  New  England:  He  told  me  that  of  lifting  up  the  Hand  had  been 
the  Ceremony  from  the  begining:  that  He  and  Some  others  did  so 
swear  on  board  the  ship  1630.  and  that  he  never  knew  an  Oath  admin- 
istered any  other  way  after  he  came  on  Shoar. 

Some  of  the  items  noted  in  the  Diary  and  Letter  Book 
have  a  pecuHar  local  interest.  The  following  paragraph,  re- 
lating to  the  navigation  of  Plum  Island  River,  will  be  appre- 
ciated by  those  who  have  had  the  misfortune  to  fall  aground 
at  Sandy  beach  when  the  tide  has  just  begun  to  ebb  :  — 

April  5.  1 69 1,  at  night,  about  12  or  i,  set  sail  in  the  Prudent  Mary, 
Bark.  Daniel  Lunt  master,  for  Newbury;  saiFd  through  Squam.  so  to 
Ipswich  Bar  and  Newbury  Sound.  Mrs.  Hannah  Moody  and  Jane 
Toppan  with  me :  fell  aground  at  Sandy  Beach  an  hour  bv  Sun, 
April  6*1'. 

March  28,  1723,  Judge  Sewall  wrote  to  Mr.  John  Boydell  in 
London,  private  secretary  to  Governor  Shute,  as  follows  :  — 

Mr.  Daniel  Rogers  of  Ipswich.  Justice  of  Peace,  and  Register  to 
Col.  Appleton,  left  his  life  something  tragically  the  last  winter.  He 
went  from  home  on  Friday  the  last  of  November,  to  Hampton:  and 
was  returning  on  Saturday  the  first  of  Dcember :  Dined  with  Mr.  Cush- 
ing  of  Salisbury:  and  then  proceeded  in  his  Journey  towards  Newbury: 
but  went  out  of  his  way  to  the  left  hand,  and  went  down  to  the  Sea  :  and 
was  maroond  and  bewilder'd  upon  the  Beach  and  Marishes,  and  at  last 
benighted.  That  Saturday  night  there  was  a  great  Gust  of  wind  with 
Snow  and  Hail,  whereby  a  vessel  in  Merrimack  River  was  driven  down: 
Her  Anchors  Could  not  hold  her.  But  near  a  ledge  of  Rocks,  on  Salis- 
bury side,  called  the  Black  Rocks,  the  Anchors  held  again.  They  put 
out  two  Anchors  in  the  Stern ;  and  'tis  conjectured  Mr.  Rogers  saw  the 
Light,  and  attempted  to  wade  over  Black   Rock  Cove,  to  get  to  it:   but 


2  54  OULD    XEIVBCRY 

he  sunk  fast,  and  the  rising  Tide  overwhehn'd  and  drowned  iiim. 
Though  his  Horse  and  Cane  were  found,  and  hundreds  sought  after 
him.  vet  he  was  not  found  till  January  14"'  by  a  Guher  accidentally. 
He  was  then  conveyed  to  Ipswich,  and  there  buried  with  his  honoral^le 
ancestors,  much  lamented  (Letter  Book,  volume  2,  page  147). 

Under  the  [)r()\-incial  charter  i;ranted  in  1691,  Samuel 
Sewall  wa.s  nominated  for  the  coimcil,  and  was  annually 
chosen  until  1725,  when  he  declined  to  serve  longer.  As 
one  of  the  assistants,  imder  the  colonial  charter,  he  was 
also,  ex  ojficio,  a  judge  of  the  superior  coiu't.  In  1692,  under 
the  provincial  charter,  he  was  appointed  one  of  the  judges 
of  a  special  court  for  the  trial  of  persons  charged  with  witch- 
craft. Nineteen  persons  were  at  different  times  tried,  con- 
demned, and  executed. 

Judge  Sewall  soon  became  convinced  that  innocent  men 
and  women  had  been  unjustly  accused  and  condemned,  and 
often  expressed  deep  regret,  penitence,  and  himi illation  for 
the  part  he  had  taken  in  causing  them  to  suffer  the  extreme 
penalty  of  the  law.  At  a  public  fast,  Jan.  14,  1696-7,  he 
presented  to  Rev.  Air.  W'illard,  his  minister,  a  note  which 
was  read  to  the  congregation  assembled  in  the  Old  South 
Church,  Boston,  he  standing  up  while  Mr.  W'illard  read  it, 
and  bowing  in  token  of  assent  when  he  had  done.  The  note 
is  printed  in  full  in  the  Diary,  and  reads  as  follows  :  — 

Copy  of  the  Bill  I  put  up  on  the  Fast  Day:  giving  it  to  Mr.  W'illard 
as  he  pass'd  by,  and  standing  up  at  th-e  reading  of  it,  and  bowing  when 
finished;    in  the  Afternoon. 

Samuel  .Sewall,  sensible  of  the  reiterated  strokes  of  Cod  upon  him- 
self and  family  :  and  being  sensible,  that  as  to  the  Guilt  contracted  upon 
the  opening  of  the  late  Comission  of  Oyer  and  Terminer  at  Salem  (to 
which  the  order  for  this  Dav  relates)  he  is.  upon  manv  accounts,  more 
concerned  than  any  that  he  knows  of.  Desires  to  take  the  Blame  and 
shame  of  it;  Asking  pardon  of  men.  And  especially  desiring  pravers 
that  (iod,  who  has  an  Unlimited  Authority,  would  pardon  that  sin.  and 
all  other  his  sins,  personal  and  Relative:  And  according  to  his  infinite 
Benignity,  and  .Sovereignty,  .\ot  visit  the  sin  of  him.  or  anv  other  upon 
himself  or  any  of  his.  nor  upon  the  Land  :  lUit  that  he  would  ]K)wer- 
fuUy  defend  him  against  all  Temptations  to  Sin.  for  the  future,  and 
vouchsafe  him  the  efficacious,  saving  Conduct   of  his   Word   and   Sjiirit. 


SAMUEL   SEW  ALL  255 

Although  he  condemned  himself  in  this  public  manner  for 
sins  committed,  he  still  retained  the  confidence  of  his  friends 
and  associates.  Under  the  provincial  charter  he  was  chosen 
Dec.  6,  1692,  one  of  the  judges  of  the  superior  court.  In 
1 718,  he  was  appointed  chief  justice  of  the  province,  and 
retained  his  seat  on  the  bench  until   1728. 

In  his  diary  he  wrote, 

Dec  30,  1 702,  I  was  vveigh'd  in  Col.  Byfiekrs  Scales :  weight  One 
Hundred  One  Half  One  Quarter  wanting  3  pounds,  i.e.,  193  Pounds 
Net.  Col.  Bytield  weighed  Si.xty  three  pounds  more  than  I  :  had  only 
my  close  coat  on.  The  Lord  add  or  take  away  from  this  our  corporeal 
weight,  so  as  shall  be  most  advantageous  for  our  Spiritual  Growth. 
July  31,  I  72 1  (In  Margin)  I  weighed  228^  p  cous.  Sami  Sewall's  Scales. 

His  first  wife  died  Oct.  19,  171 7.  For  his  second  wife 
he  married,  Oct.  29,  17 19,  Abigail,  daughter  of  Jacob 
Melyen,  who  had  been  married  twice  before ;  namely,  to 
James  Woodmansey  and  William  Tilley.  She  died  May  26, 
1 720.  A  year  later,  while  he  was  still  a  widower,  he  wrote 
the  following  letter  to  Rev.  Timothy  Woodbridge,  of 
Hartford,   Conn.,    dated  June   i,    1721:  — 

I  remember  when  I  was  going  from  school  at  Newbury,  I  have  some- 
times met  your  Sisters,  Martha  and  Mary,  at  the  end  of  Mrs.  Noyes's 
Lane,  coming  from  their  Schoole  at  Chandler's  Lane,  in  their  Hanging 
Sleeves :  and  have  had  the  pleasure  of  Speaking  with  them :  and  I 
could  find  in  my  heart  to  speak  with  Mrs.  Martha  again,  now  I  myself 
am  reduc'd  to  my  Hanging  Sleeves.  The  truth  is,  I  have  little  occasion 
for  a  Wife,  but  for  the  sake  of  Modesty  and  to  cherish  me  in  my  ad- 
vanced years  (I  was  born  March  28,  1652)  Methinks  I  could  venture  to 
lay  my  Weary  head  in  her  Lap,  if  it  might  be  brought  to  pass  upon 
Honest  Conditions.  You  know  your  Sister's  Age,  and  Disposition,  and 
Circumstances,  better  than  I  doe.  I  should  be  glad  of  your  Advice  in 
my  Fluctuations.  ^-   ^• 

Mrs.  Noyes'  Lane  is  now  Parker  Street,  Newbury  ;  and 
Chandler's  Lane  is  Federal  Street,  Newburyport. 

Hanging  sleeves  were  made  to  be  put  on  and  taken  off  as 
a  separate  article  of  dress.  They  were  usually  suspended  from 
the  shoulder,  and  often  trimmed  with  lace  and  ribbon.      They 


SAMUEL    SEWALL. 


SAMUEL    SEIVALL  257 

were  worn  b}'  both  men  and  women  as  ornamental  over-sleeves. 
Alice  Morse  Earle,  describing  the  costume  of  colonial  times, 
says  the  words  were  used  to  designate  the  dress  of  a  child  ; 
and,  in  the  above  letter,  Judge  Sewall  undoubtedly  intends  to 
convey  the  idea  of  second  childhood  by  the  phrase  "  now  I 
myself  am  reduc'd  to  my  Hanging  Sleeves."  According  to 
this  usage,  a  girl  "  still  in  hanging  sleeves  "  was  a  mere  child, 
dependent  upon  others  for  the  comforts  and  enjoyments  of 
life. 

What  answer  Rev.  Timothy  W'oodbridge  returned  to  this 
letter,  or  how  his  sister  Martha,  daughter  of  Rev.  John 
Woodbridge  and  widow  of  Samuel  Ruggles,  received  the 
message,  if  it  was  communicated  to  her,  is  uncertain.  Evi- 
dently, the  negotiations  were  unsatisfactory ;  for  Samuel 
Sewall  married  for  his  third  wife,  March  29,  1722,  Mary, 
daughter  of  Henry  Shrimpton,  and  widow  of  Robert  Gibbs. 
He  had  no  children  by  the  last  two  wives. 

For  more  than  thirty  years  Samuel  Sewall  was  a  member 
of  the  council.  He  was  urged  to  serve  longer,  but  declined 
on  account  of  ill-health.  His  letter  of  declination  reads  as 
follows  :  — 

To  the  Hon'''*'  William  Dumer  Esq.  &c.  and  to  the  Hon'''^  the  Council. 

June,  4"'  i  725. 
May  It  Please  Your  Honour. — 

I  was  yesterday  surprised  with  the  great  and  undeserved  Respect 
shewed  me  by  your  ¥iO\v  and  the  Hon''''-  Board,  in  calling  me  to  Coun- 
cil by  the  hon'''*^'  William  Tailer  Esq'',  Benjamin  Lynde  Esq.,  and  Ad- 
dington  Davenport  Esqr.  And  forasmuch  as  I  am  unable  to  Come,  I 
esteemed  it  my  bounden  Duty  to  send  m\-  Answer  in  Writing. 

I  have  under  the  present  charter  served  this  Province  Three  and 
Thirty  years,  I  hope,  faithfully.  I  pray  (iod  pardon  my  Unfaithfull- 
ness.  I  have  been  elected  Three  and  Thirty  Times  :  I  cannot  but 
wonder  at  the  Constanc)'  of  the  Electors  ! 

This  year,  a  Time  of  War.  I  find  myself  under  an  insuperable  Indis- 
position to  serve,  especially  considering  my  enfeebled  state  of  Health  ; 
the  other  publick  Employments  lying  upon  me,  and  very  weighty  Busi- 
ness of  a  more  personal  concern  necessarily  requiring  my  diligent  Atten- 
tion. I  therefore  humbly  pray  that  my  Recess  may  be  taken  in  good 
part ;   and   that   my  seeking  the  Shade,  in  my  weary  Circumstances  may 


258  OULD    XEWBCRY 

be  favoral)lv  indulged.  Praying  (iod  to  assist  and  prosper  your  Honor, 
the  Hon'''''  lioard.  and  the  whole  General  Court.  I  take  leave  to  subscribe 
mvself  your  Honons  most  humble,  and  most  obedient  Servant 

Samuel  Sewall. 

I  got  Mr.  (lerrish  to  write  it  out  fair,  and  carry  it  to  the  Council 
Chamber,  between  1  o  and  i  \  oclock  iiianc* 

Judge  Sewall  died  Jan.  i,  1730,  and  was  buried  in  the 
tomb  of  his  father-in-law,  John  Mull,  in  the  (jranary  bur)-ing 
ground  in  Boston. 

In  a  sketch  of  the  life  and  character  of  Judge  Sewall,  pub- 
lished in  the  American  Quarterly  Register,  February,  1841, 
Rev.  Samuel  Sewall  says, — 

Judge  Sewall's  principles  in  religion  were  strictly  Calvinistic  and  Con- 
gregational. He  was  warmly  attached  to  that  system  of  faith,  and  to 
those  forms  of  worship  and  government  in  the  church,  which  were  em- 
braced and  practised  by  the  Puritan  settlers  of  New  England.  Occa- 
sionally he  employed  his  pen  in  their  illustration  and  defence  :  and  was 
strongly  opposed  to  all  innovations  in  doctrine,  as  well  as  very  jealous 
of  any  ceremonies  or  usages  in  divine  service  that  savored  of  prelacy 
or  were  of  human  invention.  And  yet  he  abhorred  persecution;  did  not 
confine  religion  or  his  charity  to  persons  of  his  own  denomination ;  and 
could  be  candid  and  forbearing  to  men  who,  while  they  conformed  to 
the  generally  received  standards  of  Congregationalism  both  in  doctrine 
and  church  government,  manifested  occasionally  some  difference  of  re- 
ligious sentiment :  or  who.  on  account  of  some  novelties  in  their  modes 
of  worship  and  discipline,  were  regarded,  for  a  season  at  least,  with 
aversion  and  suspicion  by  the  great  body  of  the  people.  With  many 
Episcopalians,  for  instance,  he  lived  on  terms  of  intimacv  and  friend- 
ship, though,  from  conscientious  objections  to  the  burial  otifice,  he  would 
seldom,  if  ever,  enter  the  church  at  their  funerals.  And,  though  he  had 
a  strong  dislike  to  prelacy  and  the  book  of  common  prayer,  yet  he  would 
speak  of  individual  bishops  in  terms  of  great  respect  and  commenda- 
tion, and  lield  portions  of  that  standard  of  conformity  in  public  worship 
in  high  reverence  and  esteem.  Among  the  last  authors  whom  he  ap- 
pears to  have  read  or  consulted  were  Bishops  Jewell  and  Pearson;  and 
one  of  his  last  efforts  on  iiis  dying-bed  was  to  repeat  that  favorite 
formula  of  belief  in  the   Episcopal  service,  the  Apostl&s"  Creed. 

There  are  sex'eral  good  portraits  of  Judge  Sewall  in  exist- 
ence.     Miss   Henrietta    Ix    Kiclgeway,  of   Boston,  the  sixth  in 

*  l.i-tlLT  I'ldcil;,  Miluinc  2,  I'agc  1S3. 


SAMUEL   SEIVALL  259 

descent  from  Samuel  Sewall,  Jr.  (son  of  Judge  Sewall),  has 
in  her  possession  the  original  painting  from  which  the  photo- 
engraving accompanying  this  sketch  was  taken.  The  canvas 
measures  four  feet  by  six,  and  the  picture  is  evidently  the 
work  of  an  accomplished  artist. 

Other  portraits  similar  in  style  and  workmanship  are  owned 
by  Mr.  Samuel  Sewall,  of  Burlington,  Mass.,  and  by  Dr. 
Daniel  D.  Gilbert,  of  Dorchester,  Mass.  A  copy  of  one  of 
these  old  portraits  hangs  in  the  library  of  the  new  court- 
house at  Salem. 


•^1 


THE  TOPPAN   HOUSE. 


Toppan's  Lane,  or  Street,  as  it  is  now  called,  was  probably 
laid  out  previous  to  Aug.  5,  1650.  On  that  day  Edward 
Woodman  sold  to  Henry  Sewall  forty  acres  of  upland,  with 
house  and  barn  thereon  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  i,  page  68 
(212). 

In  the  conveyance  of  a  portion  of  this  land  to  Jacob 
Toppan,  twenty  years  later,  the  lane  is  called  Woodman's 
Lane,  and  is  evidently  the  same  way  or  street  that,  in  the 
first-mentioned  deed,  is  said  to  lead  down  to  the  Aspen 
Swamp. 

The  house  now  standing  on  this  lot  of  land  was  built  by 
Jacob  Toppan  at  or  about  the  time  of  his  marriage  to  Hannah 
Sewall,  daughter  of  Henry  Sewall.  Among  the  interesting 
papers  and  documents  in  the  possession  of  the  Historical 
Society  of  Old  Newbury  is  the  original  contract  or  agree- 
ment providing  for  the  transfer  of  this  land.  Apparently, 
only  one  of  the  contracting  parties  signed  this  agreement  ; 
and  for  this  reason,  probably,  it  was  not  acknowledged  before 
a  justice  of  the  peace  or  recorded  with  other  important  papers 
at  Ipswich.      It  reads  as  follows  :  — 

This  Indenture  made  the  twentieone  of  June  One  thousand  Six  hun- 
dred and  Seventie.  Between  Mr.  Henry  (and  his  wife  Jane)  Sewall.  on 
the  one  partie.  And  Jacob  Toppan.  of  Newbury,  on  the  other  partie 
Witnesseth  that  the  -sayd  Henry  Sewall  for  and  in  consideration  of  a' 
marriage  (by  God"s  Grace)  intended  &  shortly  to  be  had  and  solemnized 
between  the  said  Jacob  Toppan  and  Hannah,  the  daughter  of  the  said 
Henry  and  Jane  Sewall.  and  other  considerations:  him  the  sayd  Henry 
Sewall  moving  thereunto :  hath  Given.  Granted.  Assigned,  and  Con- 
firmed, and  by  these  presents  doth  give,  grant,  assigne.  and  confirms 
fully,  clearly,  and  absolutely  unto  the  sayd  Jacob  and  Hannah  a  certain 
parcel  or  tract  of  land,  lying,  situate,  and  being  in   Newbury  aforesaid. 


202  OULD   NEWBURY 

at  the  iK)rthcrly  end  of  his  liouse-lott :  as  this  day  staked  out.  l)v  Abra- 
ham Toppan  himself  and  the  sayd  Jacob  Toppan.  conteyning  sixteen 
acres,  be  it  more  or  less,  bounded  or  abutting  easterly  by  a  Lane  called 
Woodman's  Lane.  Southerly  by  his  the  Sa\-d  Henrv  Sewalls  own  land. 
Westerly  by  .some  Land  of  Will  Alillburies  Q)  and  Will  or  Caleb 
Moody's,  and  Xorthernly  by  the  countrie  highway.  To  Have  And  To 
Hold  the  sayd  sixteen  acres  of  land,  be  it  more  or  less,  with  all  and 
every  the  Trees,  fences,  priviledges.  liberties,  and  appurtenances  thereto 
belonging.  ...  In  Witness  whereof  the  saj-d  Henry  Sewall  hath  hereunto 
set  his  hand  and  seale  and  the  sayd  Jacob  Toppan  also  interchangeably 
the  twentie  first  day  of  June  one  thousand  six  hundred  and  seventie. 

Sealed  and  delivered  in  presence  of  Jacob  Toppax. 

Samuel  Sewall. 

Although  the  "sixteen  acres  of  land,  more  or  less,  on 
Woodman's  Lane,"  were  not  legally  conveyed  by  the  incom- 
plete agreement  quoted  above,  it  is  evident  from  the  follow- 
ing clause,  taken  from  the  will  of  Henry  Sewall,  dated  Aug. 
17,  1678,  and  proved  May  24,  1700,  that  Jacob  Toppan  built 
a  house  there  previous  to  1678  :  — 

I  give  to  my  sonne  in  law,  Jacob  Topan,  &  my  daughter.  Hannah 
Topan.  his  wife,  sixteen  acres  of  land,  be  it  more  or  less,  whereon  his 
house  no7o  staiidetJi.  as  it  lyes  already  bounded,  being  a  part  of  the 
forty  acres  purchased  of  Mr.  Woodman,  during  their  natural  lives :  .  .  . 
and  after  their  decease  I  give  both  the  upland  and  meadow  to  the  heire 
or  heirs  begotten  or  to  be  begotten  of  the  bodv  of  mv  savd  daughter. 
Hannah  Topan,  &c. 

Abraham  Toppan,  father  of  Jacob  Toppan,  also  made  a 
conveyance  of  real  estate  on  the  twenty-first  day  of  June, 
1670.  The  original  deed  is  in  the  j^ossession  of  the  Newbtuy 
Historical  Society.  An  e.xact  co\>y  may  be  found  in  the 
Esse.x  Registry  of  Deeds  (Ipswich  .Series,  book  3.  page  157 
(118).      It  reads  as  follows  :  — 

To  all  people  to  whom  tliis  present  writing  shall  come  to  be  read  or 
understood  know  yee :  that  I,  Abraham  Toppan  of  Newbury  in  ve 
county  of  Essex  in  N:  L:  yeoman,  in  consideration  of  a  marriage 
shortly  l)y  (lod's  mercy  to  be  solemnized  between  my  son  Jacol>  and 
Hannah,  ye  daughter  of  Mr.  Henry  Sewall  of  .\cw])urv  aforesaid  :  and 
for  otlier   good    just    causes    and    considerations    me   thereunto    moving 


THE    TOPPAN  HOUSE  263 

Have  Given,  Granted.  Assigned.  Made  over,  Conveyed  and  Confirmed 
either  one  half  part  or  moity  of  my  home  lot,  consisting  of  26  acres  of 
Orchard,  plow-ground  &  pasture  land.  \vt  ye  one  half  of  all  my  other 
Lands  dividend,  meadow  &  marish  in  Newbury  aforesaid,  wt  ye  cleare 
half  of  all  ye  liberties,  priviledges  and  appertinances  to  ye  same  belong- 
ing, wt  one  half  of  ye  barn  &  outhouses  which  were  in  my  possession 
ye  30  day  of  July.  1661  :  or  ye  full  value  of  ye  premises  aforementioned 
into  ten  shillings ;  wt  my  hay  lot  by  me  purchased  at  plum-island  of 
Richard  Dole  &  other  estate,  goods  &  chattels,  wt  my  dwelling-house  as 
expressed  in  my  will,  signed  and  sealed  in  presence  of  Mary  Lunt,  Joseph 
Hills  &  Henry  Sewall.  bearing  date  ye  20  day  of  June,  1670;  as  in  my 
said  will  is  more  at  large  expressed :  ...  in  witness  whereof  I  have 
hereunto  set  my  hand  and  scale  ye  21  of  June  1670.  And  in  ye  twenty 
second  yeare  of  our  sovereign  Lord  Charles  ye  11. .  by  ye  grace  of 
God,  of  England,  Scotland.  France  &  Ireland  King.  Defender  of  ye 
faith,  &c. 

,    ,  ^,    ,  ,.         ,  Abraha.ai  Toppax. 

Sealed  Ov:  delivered  m  ve  presence  ot 

Mary  Lunt 

Hexry  Sewall 

Joseph  Hill.s 

June  22nd,  1670.  Abraham  Toppan  did  acl<nowledge  this  writing  to 
be  signed  &  sealed  by  him  as  his  act  and  deed  before  me. 

Daxiell  Dexisox. 
July  5th.  1670. 

Recorded  among  ye  records  of  Lands  for  Essex  at  Ipswich  in  ye 
third  book  folio  :    157  per  me 

Robert  Lord,  Recorder. 

Abraham  Toppan,  who  signed  and  executed  the  above 
deed,  was  born  in  England  about  the  year  1608.  He  mar- 
ried Susannah  "Goodale,  daughter  of  EHzabeth  Goodale.  He 
sailed  from  Yarmouth  with  his  wife  and  two  children  May  10, 
1637  ;  and  the  same  year,  October  16,  he  was  admitted  to  the 
rights  and  privileges  of  an  inhabitant  of  the  town  of  Newbury 
in  New  England. 

When  the  meeting-house  was  removed  to  the  new  town  in 
1646,  it  was  set  up  "in  or  upon  a  knowle  of  upland  by 
Abraham  Toppan's  barne,"  near  the  northerly  line  or  limit  of 
the  burying-ground  at  the  "  trayneing  green."  Mr.  Toppan 
owned  at  that  date  twenty-six  acres  of  land  on  the  easterly 


264  O  UL  D  NE  1 1  '/>■  rA-y 

side  of  Migh  Street,  extending  from  the  lot  where  the  meet- 
ing-house was  erected  to  Muzzey's  Lane  (now  known  as  Marl- 
borough Street),  with  dwelling-house,  barn,  and  outbuildings 
thereon. 

Jul}'  30,  1 66 1,  he  conveyed  to  his  son  Peter  one-half  of 
this  land,  house,  barns,  etc.,  by  a  deed  recorded  in  Ipswich 
Series,  book  3,  page  159  (119).  This  deed  also  pro\ides 
that,  after  the  decease  of  the  testator  and  his  wife  Susanna, 
the  other  half  of  this  estate  shall  become  the  property  of  "the 
said  Peter  Toppan." 

Abraham  Toppan  died  Nov.  5,  1672,  aged  sixty-four.  His 
children  were  as  follows  :  — 

Peter,  born  in  England  in  1634;   married,  April  3,  1661.  Jane,  daughter 

of  Christopher  Batt,  of  Boston. 
Elizabeth,    born    in    England:     married    Samuel    Alighill.    of     Kowley, 

March  21,  ^C^S7■ 
Abraham,   born  in    Newbury  in  1644:   married  Ruth,  daughter  of   John 

Pike  ;   died  (leaving  no  issue)  in  1704. 
Jacob,  born  in  Newbury  in  1645  -   married  Hannah  Sewall.  daughter  of 

Henry  Sewall. 
Susanna,  born  in  Newbury  June  13,  1649. 
John,   born  in   Newbury  April  23,    1651  ;   married,  tirst,  Martha  Browne 

Sept.  I,  1 68 1,  and,  second.  Mrs.  Ruth  Heard  in  171  7. 
Isaac,  born   in   Newbury;   married,   first,   Hannah    Kent  Sept.  2(;.  1669, 

and,  second,  Mary  March,  March  27,  1691. 

In  the  will  of  Abraham  Tojipan,  dated  June  20,  1670,  and 
proved  March  25,  1673,  there  is  a  clause  which  reads  as 
follows  :  — 

Yet  forasmuch  as  my  son  Jacol)  is  shortly  by  God's  permission  to 
enter  marriage  with  Hannah,  the  daughter  of  AP  Henry  and  Jane 
Sewall,  and  to  live  in  the  house  with  myself  and  wife,  >S:c..  as  long  as 
my  wife  iS;  self  live.  .  .  .  my  full  mind  and  desire  is  that  mv  son  Peter 
be  content  to  let  fall  his  claymc  unto  the  other  half  ])art  of  the  housing, 
lands,  and  other  the  ];remises  before  expressed,  menconed  in  the  savd, 
covenant  to  the  end  my  son  Jacob  mav  inherit  the  same. 

Some  complications  ami  disagreements  seem  to  ha\e  re- 
sulted from  this  attem|)l  to  annul  the  deed  of  conxeyance 
made   in    1661.      When   the   will    was   presented    for    probate, 


THE    TO  PP. AN  HOUSE  265 

Peter  Toppan  filed  a  caveat,  stating  "  that  my  deare  ffather 
Abraham  Toppan  did  give  unto  me  one  half  his  estate,  .  .  . 
and  put  me  (or  us)  in  possession  of  the  other  half  in  some 
sort  by  our  making  use  of  it  together  with  them  soe  long  as 
we  dwelt  together."  There  are  also  several  depositions  of 
personal  friends  and  relatives  who  testify  to  certain  facts  and 
circumstances  connected  with  the  first  conveyance  of  the 
property  to  Peter  Toppan.  It  is  somewhat  uncertain  how 
the  question  of  ownership  was  finally  settled  ;  but  appear- 
ances seem  to  indicate  that  Peter  Toppan  retained  possession 
of  the  old  homestead.  In  the^, records  of  the  town  of  New- 
bury, under  date  of  July  8,  169^,  is  the  following  entry  :  — 

Whereas  Dr.  Peter  Toppan  hath  fenced  in  a  part  of  the  highway 
between  the  meeting  house  and  Aluzzie's  Lane,  the  town  do  desire  and 
appoint  the  men  hereafter  named  to  be  a  committee  to  find  where  the 
bounds  of  s''  Dr.  Toppan"s  land  is.  at  his  charges,  and  to  bring  report  to 
the  town  at  their  next  meeting  concerning  the  way  'against  said  land 
between  it  and  Merrimack  river.  Ye  persons  appointed  for  s'^  committee 
are  Coll  Daniel  Pierce,  Esq.,  Major  Davidson,  Esc[..  Capt.  Henry 
Somerby,   Corporal  George  Merrill  &  Henry  Short. 

Meanwhile  the  house  in  Toppan's  Lane  had  been  built,  and 
was  occuj^ied  by  a  large  and  growing  family. 

Jacob  Toppan,  son  of  Abraham  Toppan,  married  Hannah 
Sewall  Aug.  24,  1670.      Their  children  were  as  follows  :  — 

Jacob,  born  May  20,  1671  :   married  Sarah  Kent. 

Samuel,  born  Sept.  30,  1672;   died  Aug.  18,  1691. 

Jane,  born  Sept.  28,  1674. 

John,  born  Jan.  29,  1677;   married  Judith  Moody. 

Hannah,  born  March  4,  1679. 

Elizabeth,  born  Dec.  20,  1680:   married  Cutting  Xoyes. 

Abraham,  born  June  29,  1684;   married  Esther  Wigglesworth.  daughter 

of  Rev.  Michael  Wigglesworth. 
Anne,  born  Alay  16,  1686;   married  Nathaniel  Rolfe. 

Judge  Samuel  Sewall  says  in  his  diary,  under  date  of  Aug. 
19,  1 69 1,  with  reference  to  the  illness  of   Samuel  Toppan, — 

Sent  Jane  to  Xewburv  bv  Tim"  Burbenk  to  help  tend  her  Brother 
Sam.  Toppan,  who  is  there  taken  ill  of  the  Small  Pocks. 


2  66  OULD    NEWBURY 

And  under  date  of  i\ugust  28,  l^'iida}',  he  writes  of  his  death 
as  follows  :  — 

Fast  at  Charlestown  where  I  am.  After  mv  coming  home,  when  tis 
almost  dark.  Jane  Toppan  comes  in  from  Newbury  and  brings  the  very 
sorrowfull  News  of  the  death  of  Cous.  Sam  Toppan  last  Tuesday  night 
about  nine  of  the  clock;  buried  the  Wednesday  night  following  because 
of  the  Heat.  No  minister  with  him  :  Mr.  Shove  prayd  not  with  him  at 
all.  went  not  to  him  till  was  Just  dying;  .Suppose  might  be  afraid  "s 
school. 

Samuel  Toppan  was  only  nineteen  years  of  age  at  the  time 
of  his  death.  Mr.  Shove  was  undoubtedly  his  teacher.  It  is 
evident  from  this  brief  extract  from  Judge  Sewall's  diary  that 
Mr.  Shove's  conduct  on  this  occasion  was  not  looked  upon 
with  api:)roval,  and  that  he  was  expected  in  case  of  sickness, 
however  dangerous  or  contagious  it  might  be,  to  visit  the  suf- 
fering pupil,  and  offer  him  spiritual  food  and  consolation. 
That  his  labors  were  onerous  and  his  compensation  exceed- 
ingly meagre  is  apparent  from  the  following  vote,  passed  at  a 
general  town  meeting  held  in  May,  1691  :  — 

Tlie  town  grants  Mr.  Seth  Shove  thirty  pounds  for  the  vear  ensuing, 
provided  he  will  Ije  our  schoolmaster  and  so  forth  as  followeth  :  namely, 
to  teach  readers  free,  Latin  scholars  sixpence  per  week,  writers  and 
cypherers  fourpence  per  week,  to  keep  the  school  one  third  part  of  the 
'year  at  the  middle  of  the  new  towne,  one  third  part  at  the  school  house, 
and  the  other  third  part  about  middle  way  between  the  meeting  house 
and  old  town  ferry. 

Judge  Sewall  often  mentions  "  l^rother  Jacob  Toppan  and 
sister  Hannah  Topjian "  in  his  diary.  He  was  a  frequent 
visitor  at  the  house  in  Toppan's  Lane,  and  often  lodged  there 
for  a  night.  In  1701,  on  his  way  from  Exeter  and  Ports- 
mouth to  Ipswich,  Salem,  and  lioston,  under  date  of  Jul)-  12, 
he  says  :  — 

Bairsto  and  I  alone  goe  to  Newl)ury  l)ctime.  over  Carr's  bridge. 
Dine  at  Ijro''  ToiKins.  visit  .Arcii.  Woodman:    Lodge  at  sister  C.errishes. 

The  bridge  to  which  reference  is  made  in  the  aboxe  tiuota- 
tion   was  the   floating   bridu,e  that    has  been  describeil  in  con- 


THE    TOPPAN  HOUSE  267 

nection  with  Carr's  Ferry,  and  was  the  only  route  by  which 
travellers  could  reach  Newbury  from  the  east. 

John  Sewall,  brother  of  Judge  Sewall  and  Hannah  Toppan, 
lived  near  the  Toppan  house  in  Toppan's  Lane.  He  died 
Aug.  8,  1699.  Hannah  Toppan  died  Nov.  11,  1699;  and 
Jacob  Toppan  married,  for  his  second  wife,  Mrs.  Hannah 
Tessenden  Sewall,  widow  of  John  Sewall. 

The  pleasant  and  friendly  relations  that  existed  between 
the  families  of  Jacob  Toppan  and  Judge  Sewall  were  not 
interrupted  by  this  event,  and  the  interchange  of  hospitalities 
occurred  with  even  more  frequency  during  the  next  ten  or 
fifteen  years.  In  his  diary.  Judge  Sewall  often  notes  the 
arrival  in  Boston  of  some  member  of  "  brother  Jacob  Top- 
pan's  family"  ;  and  many  of  the  references  in  that  journal  to 
Newbury  contain  items  of  local  interest,  like  the  following  :  — 

May  12,  1 716,  Go  to  Ram  Island  with  Bro""  Topan  and  Capt.  Green- 
lef.      Dine  at  Brc  Topan's.     Visit  my  Relations. 

Jacob  Toppan  died  Dec.  30,  171 7,  aged  seventy-three. 
His  widow  died  April  4,  1723.  The  house  in  which  he 
lived  is  still  standing,  and  has  remained  in  the  possession  of 
his  lineal  descendants  from  the  day  of  his  death  to  the 
present  time. 


MILL   AT   THE   MOUTH   OF   ARTICHOKE 
RIVER. 


John  Emery  was  born  in  England  Sept.  29,  1598.  He 
sailed  from  Southampton  April  3,  1635,  with  his  wife  and 
children,  accompanied  by  his  brother  Anthony  Emery  and 
family,  and  arrived  in  Boston  June  3,  1635. 

A  few  weeks  later  he  came  to  Newbur)',  and  was  granted 
half  an  acre  of  land  at  the  Lower  Green  for  a  house  lot.  He 
was  made  a  freeman  in  1641,  and  in  1642  his  name  appears 
in  the  list  of  ninety-one  proprietors  who  are  "  acknowledged 
to  have  proportionable  rights  in  all  the  common  and  undivided 
land  within  the  limits  of  the  town." 

Under  date  of  Dec.  18,  1645,  Coffin,  in  his  History  of 
Newbur}',  sa}'s  a  committee  of  se\'en  men  were  appointed  to 
make  arrangements  for  the  construction  of  a  grist-mill  in  the 
town  ;  and  this  committee  agreed  to  give  John  Emery  and 
Samuel  Scullard  ^20  in  merchantable  pay,  with  ten  acres  of 
upland  and  six  acres  of  meadow,  and  also  to  make  the  mill 
free  from  all  taxes  for  the  first  seven  years,  and  a  freehold 
to  them  and  their  heirs  forever,  provided  they  would  agree  on 
their  part  "  to  set  up  said  mill  between  Nicholas  Holt's  point 
and  Edward  Woodman's  bridge  ready  for  the  towne's  use  to 
grind  the  town's  grists  at  or  before  the  twenty  ninth  of 
September,   1646." 

Notwithstanding  the  urgent  need  of  a  grist-mill  in  that 
locality,  and  the  liberal  offer  made  in  behalf  of  the  town,  the 
conditions  of  the  proposal  were  not  complied  with,  and  the 
mill  was  not  built  until  thirty  years  later. 

May  18,  1647,  the  town  granted  John  Emery  about  three 
acres  of  land  in  the  vicinity  of  Old  Town  Hill,  reserving 
twenty  rods  for  a  "burying  place."     This  lot   of  land  is  still 


270  OL'LD    XEIVBURY 

known  as  the  "  Emery  Lot,"  and  is  more  fully  described  in 
the  preceding  pages  in  connection  with  the  settlement  at  the 
Lower  (jreen. 

In  1663,  he  was  presented  to  the  court  at  Ipswich  for  en- 
tertaining travellers  and  Quakers.  From  the  evidence  sworn 
to  by  several  witnesses  it  appears  "  y'  two  men  quakers  w'  en- 
tertained \-ery  kindly  to  bed  and  table,  &  John  Emmerie  shok 
y'"  by  ye  hand  and  bid  y"'  welcome."  Also  "that  the  witness 
heard  John  Emery  and  his  wife  say  that  he  had  entertained 
quakers  and  that  he  would  not  put  them  from  his  house,  and 
used  arguments  for  the  lawfulness  of  it."  He  was  fined  ^4 
and  cost  of  court.      He  died  Nov.  3,  1683. 

John  Emery,  Jr.,  was  born  in  England  about  162S,  and 
came  to  Newbury  with  his  father  in  1635.  Ii"*  the  town 
records,  under  date  of  April  10,  1644,  is  the  following  state- 
ment :  — 

There  was  laid  out  unto  John  Emery,  junior,  four  score  akers  of 
upland,  bee  it  more  or  lesse.  joyneing  unto  Alerrimacke  river  on  the 
north  and  running  from  the  mouth  of  Artichoke  river  unto  a  marked 
tree  by  a  swamp  on  the  northwest  corner,  being  about  one  liundred  and 
thirty  two  rods  long  at  the  head  of  the  cove,  thence  about  an  hundred 
rods  to  the  Southwest  Corner,  thence  running  on  a  strait  lyne  about  an 
hundred  and  fifty  six  rods  to  Artichoke  river  on  the  east  about  eighty 
rods  broad. 

Rev.  Rufus  lunery,  in  his  genealogy  of  the  Emery  family, 
says  :  — 

Forty  acres  of  this  land  was  a  grant  of  the  town  of  Newbury  to  John 
Emery,  Senior,  and  by  him  given  to  his  son  in  consideration  of  love  and 
affection.  The  remaining  forty  acres  were  bought  of  Archelaus  Wood- 
man for  thirty  i)ounds,  l^eing  a  town  grant  to  him. 

This  land  has  remained  iu  the  possession  of  the  descend- 
ants of  John  luiiery  from  1644  to  the  present  time.  It  is 
now  owned  by  Mrs.  Mary  Hale  Emery,  widow  of  Rev. 
Samuel  hjnery,  U.  D.,  and  daughter  of  the  late  Eliphalet 
Emer)',  of  West  Newbury. 

John  I'jner)',  Jr.,  uiarried,  (^ct.  2,  1648,  Mary  Webster, 
daughter  of  John   and    Mary  Webster,  and  probabl)"  built  the 


MILL    AT   THE   MOUTH   OF  ARTICHOKE    RIVER        271 

first  dwelling-house  on  this  land,  and  commenced  housekeep- 
ing there  about  that  date. 

At  a  legal  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of 
Newbury  Nov.  22,  1678,  the  town 

Granted  to  John  Emery.  Jun'r,  twelve  acres  of  land  on  the  west  side 
of  Artichoke  River  adjoyneing  to  his  owne  land,  Provided  that  he  build 
and  maintaine  a  corne  Mill  to  grind  the  Towne's  corne  from  time  to 
time,  and  to  build  it  within  one  yeare  and  an  halfe  after  the  Date 
hereof,  And  the  Inhabitants  of  the  Towne  to  have  their  corne  ground 
according  to  their  Turnes  before  any  of  another  Towne. 

And  March  3,  1678-9,  the  following  vote  was  passed  :  — 

Whereas  there  is  some  dafficulty  about  John  Emery  his  grant  above- 
said  about  the  mill.  It  was  referred  to  Capt  Daniel  Pierce,  Richard 
Bartlet,  and  Tristram  Coffin  to  treat  with  John  Emery  &  to  perfect  the 
said  Bargaine  both  for  place  and  other  conveiniances  belonging  there 
unto  &  bring  it  to  the  Towne  the  ne.xt  meeting. 

The  report  submitted  by  this  committee  was  not  recorded, 
or,  if  recorded  at  that  time,  has  since  been  lost  or  purloined 
from  the  records.  It  is  evident,  however,  from  subsequent 
developments  that  satisfactory  arrangements  were  made  for 
the  construction  of  a  dam  and  the  erection  of  a  mill  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Artichoke  River,  and  that  the  work  was  under- 
taken during  the  ensuing  summer  and  carried  through  to  its 
completion.^  Dec.  13,  1686,  the  town  appointed  a  committee 
"  to  lay  out  a  convenient  highway  of  such  breadth  as  they 
shall  see  meet  thro'  the  plaines  to  Sergeant  Emery's  mill." 
Under  the  care  and  supervision  of  John  Emery  the  mill  was 
put  in  operation  and  did  efficient  service  for  many  years. 

April  18,  1693,  being  in  failing  health,  John  Emery  made 
an  agreement  with  his  son  Stephen  "  to  tend  the  said  mill  or 
provide  one  that  hath  skill  to  doe  it,  &  to  be  att  half  the 
charges  to  maintain  and  keep  in  good  repair  all  the  running 
geers  &  Iron  work  of  the  said  mill."  And  "  the  said  Stephen 
Emery  is  for  his  pains  to  have  half  of  the  income  of  the  mill 
&  his  father,  John  Emery,  the  other  half  during  his  natural 
life,  &  after  his  decease  the  said  mill  to  be  to  the  said  Stephen 


272  OULD    NEWBURY 

Emery  as  liis  own  free  and  proper  estate"  (Mssex  Registry 
of  Deeds,  book  9,  page  146). 

This  agreement  to  con\'e)'  tlie  mill  and  other  property  to 
Stephen  I'jnery  was  confirmed  b)-  a  <\(ic([  dated  May  19, 
1693,  and  recorded  in  book  9,  i)age  119,  and  also  by  the  will 
of  John  Emery,  dated  Aug.  3,  1693,  and  j^roxed  Sej^t.  26, 
1693. 

Stephen  ]^mer\',  who  came  into  possession  of  the  i)roi)erty 
on  the  death  of  his  father,  was  born  in  Newbur)'  SejDt.  6, 
1666,  and  married,  Nov.  29,  1692,  Ruth,  daughter  of  Henry 
and  Anna  Jaques.  He  had  charge  of  the  mill,  and  "attended 
to  the  grinding  of  the  town's  corne"  for  more  than  fifty 
years. 

In  confirmation  of  a  grant  of  land  made  to  John  Emery, 
of  which  no  record  could  be  found,  it  was  voted  at  a  legal 
meeting  of  the  town  of  Newbury  March  8,  1696-7,  that 

Whereas  there  was  three  acres  of  land  lying  on  the  east  side  of  Arte- 
choak  River  granted  formerly  to  Serj.  John  Emery  towards  the  building 
his  corne  mill,  and  it  was  formerly  laid  out  and  bounded  as  it  is  now 
fenced  together  with  the  stream  of  Artechoak  River;  but  there  being  no 
record  to  be  found  of  the  same  the  Towne  now  h\  the\r  vote  do  confirm 
the  said  three  acres  of  land  as  it  is  now  fenced  and  the  privilege  of  the 
said  demeane  unto  the  lawful  heyrs  and  of  the  said  John  Emery,  late  of 
Newbury,  deceazed,  they  keeping  and  maintaining  a  good  &  sufficient 
Corne  mill  on  said  stream  on  the  tearms  and  conditions  mentioned  in  a 
grant  of  the  Towne,  of  November  22,  1678,  as  also  of  a  Deed  of  a  way 
for  passing  &  repassing  for  the  inhabitants  of  Newbury  on  the  west 
side  of  said  Artichoak  River  bearing  date  ye  fourth  of  februarv,  1696-7. 

Vera  Copia  Taken  out  of  the   Records  of   Newbury  this  24"'  day  of 

March,  i6g8-q.  k  ..  tt  e  -r-  x-/ 

^     ^  Attes  Hexrv  Short,  foivnc  Lie. 

for  Newbury. 

Stephen  hjnery  died  Eeb.  i,  1746-7,  leax'ing  a  famil\-  of 
eleven  children.  His  onl)'  son,  Stephen,  born  ]\\\\  16,  I  710, 
came  into  i)()ssession  of  the  mill  pr()i)ert)'.  He  married 
Hannah,  daughter  of  Henry  and  Hannah  Rolfe,  May  5,  1732. 
Sept.  28,  I  76 1,  he  sold  the  grist-mill,  and  also  a  saw-mill  ad- 
joining the  same,  to  Jonathan  l^agley,  of  Amesbur\-  (h^sse.x 
Registry  of  Deeds,  book  120,  page  144). 


MILL   AT   THE   MOUTH   OF  ARTICHOKE   RIl'ER        273 

It  is  a  tradition  in  the  family  that  Stephen  Emery  sold  this 
property  in  order  to  raise  money  for  the  purpose  of  estab- 
lishing his  son  Benjamin  in  business  at  Rumford,  now 
Concord,  N.  H.  The  purchaser,  Jonathan  Bagley,  was  re- 
quired to  give  a  bond  in  the  sum  of  one  thousand  pounds 
sterling  "  to  faithfully  perform  the  conditions  with  Respect 
to  grinding  corn  for  the  inhabitants  of  the  Town  of  Newbury 
agreeable  to  the  Conditions  in  which  the  said  Stream  was 
granted  to  John  Emery."  This  bond  is  in  the  possession  of 
Mrs.  Mary  Hale  Emery,  a  lineal  descendant  of  Stephen  and 
John  P^mery. 

The  new  owner  was  active  and  industrious.  He  extended 
the  business  at  remunerative  rates,  and  served  the  town 
acceptably  as  miller  for  twenty-five  years.  The  executors 
of  his  will,  under  a  license  of  the  court  granted  in  July,  1784, 
sold  to  Stephen  Hooper,  of  Newburyport,  "two  grist  mills 
with  lands  adjoining  the  same,  dam,  &c."  The  deed  is  dated 
June  2,  1786,  and  recorded  in  book  146,  page  158. 

Stephen  Hooper,  of  Newbury,  for  $2,700,  sold  to  William 
Dandridge  Peck,  of  Kittery,  Me.,  April  16,  1800,  about  eight 
acres  of  land  on  the  road  leading  to  "  Emery's  mill,"  also 
twelve  acres  "bounded  westerly  on  the  Artichoke  River," 
"together  with  a  grist  mill,  saw  mill,  hulling  mill,  mill  dam 
with  privilege  of  the  whole  stream,  a  dwelling  house,  barn, 
&c."  (book  166,  page  217). 

William  Dandridge  Peck  was  born  in  Boston  in  1763,  and 
graduated  at  Harvard  College  in  1782.  While  owner  of 
these  mills,  he  was  chosen  Professor  of  Natural  History  at 
Harvard  College,  and  was  authorized  to  visit  Europe  for  the 
purpose  of  obtaining  information  and  familiarizing  himself 
with  the  course  of  instruction  and  methods  of  study  pursued 
there.  Aug.  7,  1820,  he  sold  "to  Samuel  Curson  of  New- 
buryport, merchant,"  the  land  above  described,  "with  a  grist 
mill,  saw  mill,  house,  barn,  &c."  (book  224,  page  99). 

Since  that  date  the  property  has  remained  in  the  posses- 
sion of  Samuel  Curzon  and  his  descendants.  The  mill  is 
still  in  good  order  and  condition  ready  to  meet  the  require- 
ments of  the  original   grant  as  regards  the  grinding  of  corn. 


2  74  OULD   NE]VBURY 

Its  interesting:;  history  and  the  i)ictin'esque  beauty  of  the 
landscape  in  that  immediate  vicinity  has  attracted  the  aKen- 
tion  of  artists,  of  national  as  well  as  local  reputation,  who  ' 
have  reproduced  on  canvas,  from  almost  every  point  of  view, 
the  prominent  and  characteristic  features  of  the  old  mill  and 
its  surroundings. 


OLD   SHIP-YARDS. 


The  building  and  sailing  of  ships  stimulated  and  accel- 
erated the  growth  and  prosperity  of  Newbury,  and  became  at 
an  early  day  one  of  its  leading  industries.  As  a  means  of 
support  and  source  of  wealth,  it  ranked  next  in  importance  to 
farming  and  fishing.  With  an  abundant  supply  of  pine  and 
oak  timber  near  at  hand,  and  a  constantly  increasing  demand 
for  small  vessels  suitable  for  the  coasting  trade,  it  is  evident 
that  the  banks  of  the  Merrimack  River  were  soon  made 
available  for  ship-building  purposes. 

It  is  possible  that  sloops  and  shallops  were  built  on  the 
river  Parker  previous  to  the  year  1700,  as  the  first  settle- 
ment was  made  in  that  vicinity,  but  there  is  no  evidence  of 
the  fact. 

Duncan  Stewart  was  a  skilful  and  experienced  shipwright. 
He  occupied  for  some  years  a  farm  at  Newbury  Falls  be- 
longing to  the  estate  of  William  Dummer  (Ipswich  Deeds, 
book  4,  leaf  370).  Soon  after  the  division  of  that  estate, 
Nov.  23,  1680,  he  removed  to  Rowley.  If  he  gave  any 
attention  to  ship-building  during  his  residence  in  Newbury,  he 
undoubtedly  made  use  of  the  first  convenient  and  favorable 
location  for  building  purposes  below  Thorlay's  bridge*  on 
the  river  Parker. 

^  Jonathan  Woodman,  son  of  Edward  Woodman,  was  also  a 
ship-builder  in  Newbury  at  a  very  early  date,  as  will  appear 
from  a  perusal  of  the  following  official  document  on  file  at 
the  state  house  in  Boston  :  — 

*  Coffin,  m  his  History  of  Newbury,  says  there  was  a  ship-yard,  and  ships  were  built  at  Thor- 
lay's bridge  in  1723.  Rev.  Moses  Parsons,  of  Eyfield,  wrote  in  an  interleaved  almanac :  "Aug.  6, 
1751.     Vessel  launched  at  Thorlay's  bridge." 


276  OULD   XEWBURY 

To  Edward  Michelson.  marshal!  (ienerall.  or  his  Deputy 

You  are  hereby  Required  in  his  magisties  name  to  sumon  &  raquire 
Barthohnew  Stratton  of  Boston  in  New  England,  marriner  &  master 
&  one  eighth  Fts.  owner  of  the  late  Ship  Salumander.  togither  with 
Elisha  Hutchinson  of  Boston.  Merchant,  for  himselfe  &  Elisha  Sanford. 
owner  of  the  one  moyety.  or  two  quarter  pts  of  said  Ship  with  J  no 
Poole,  merchant,  owner  of  one  other  quarter  part  of  said  Ship.  &  Mary, 
the  Relict  &  administratrix  to  the  Estate  &  goods  of  the  late  Henry 
Kemble  of  Boston.  Smith,  that  was  owner  to  the  other  eighth  part  of 
the  said  Ship.  &  take  Bond  of  them  or  as  many  of  them  as  you  can 
meet  withal,  to  the  value  of  400  pounds  money  with  sufficient  surety  or 
sureties  for  them  ;  to  make  vr  several  &  respective  appearances  at  a 
Court  of  Admiraltv  called  &  to  be  held  at  Boston  on  ic,^"^  day  of  this 
Instant  March  at  nine  of  the  clock  of  y^'  morning,  then  &  there  to  An- 
swer, as  owners  of  the  late  Ship  aforesaid,  the  complaint  &  libell  ex- 
hibited &  presented  to  the  said  Court  by  Jonathan  Woodman  of  New- 
berrv.  Shipwright  &  Builder,  for  that  the  said  Bartholmew  Stratton. 
master,  in  behalf  of  himself  &  owners  aforesaid,  confermed  to  by  Elisha 
Hutchinson  for  himselfe  &  EHsha  Sandford  for  their  proportion  &  Jno 
Poole  for  his  proportions  of  said  Ship  as  abovesaid  have  broken  their 
covenants  made  withim  the  said  Woodman  by  said  Stratton  in  behalf  of 
himself  &  them,  the  said  owners  aforesaid,  as  by  respective  papers  & 
evidences  will  &  may  appear:  &  since  the  said  Stratton.  master  afore- 
said, hath  received  said  above  mentioned  Ship  into  his  custody  &  pos- 
session in  behalf  &  for  the  use  of  sd  owners  aforesaid  &  accordingly 
carried  or  removed  the  said  Ship  away  from  his  place.  Nevertheless 
both  one  &  all  the  said  owners  aforesaid  hath  denied  &  still  doth  Re- 
fuse to  make  satisfaction  &  payment  to  the  said  Woodman  for  the  said 
Ship,  according  to  their  first  and  after  ingagement.  putting  the  said 
Woodman  to  great  loss,  charges,  damages,  which  by  the  whole  account 
will  appear  no  less  than  two  hundred  sixty  eight  pounds  seaventeen 
shillings  sixpence  money  and  goods  or  thereabouts  &  still  from  said 
Woodman  doth  detayn  the  same  or  value  thereof  according  to  their 
Respective  proportions  as  owners  aforesaid  for  which  their  bonds  & 
securities  aforesaid  is  to  be :  that  the  above  said  owners  shall  not  only 
appear  &  attend  their  respective  concernes  in  said  Court,  but  shall  re- 
spond &  abide  the  decree  thereof,  so  make  a  true  returne  hereof  under 
your  hand.      Dated  in  Boston  23  March.  1675-6. 

By  the  Court     Edward  Rawsox.  Secy. 

That  this  is  a  true  Copie  Comjiard  with  the  originall  on  file  as  attest 

I'.DWi'  Rawsox.  Sccry. 
Endorsed 

So  far  as  1   am  concerned  I  shall  appear  l)y  virtue  of  this  .Itachment 
witness  my  had  this  23"'  March  1675-6.  j,  ^^^^         j^.^^     Pole. 


OLD   SHIP-YARDS  277 

So  far  as  I  am  concerned  I  shall  appear  by  vertue  of  this  Atachment 
witness  my  hand  23''  March  1675-6. 

P  me         Bartholmew   Strettox. 

I,  Mary  Kemble.  administratrix  to  my  husband,  Henry  Kemble.  doe 
engage  to  appear,  according  to  the  within  written  Sumons,  as  my  hand 
this  23"!  March  1676.  Mary   Kemble. 

That  what  is  above  written  is  a  true  copy  of  ye  marshalls  Endors- 
ments  as  above.  Edward  Rawsox.  Secy* 

Jonathan  Woodman  married  Hannah  Hilton  July  2,  1668. 
March  25,  1681,  he  received  from  his  father,  Edward  Wood- 
man, a  deed  of  land,  dwelling-house,  etc.  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book 
4,  leaf  425). 

Sept.  24,  168 1,  Jonathan  Woodman,  shipwright,  "in  con- 
sideration that  my  uncle  Stephen  Greenleafe,  Tristram  Coffin 
&  Nathaniel  Clarke,  all  of  Newbury,  have  bound  themselves 
to  my  father,  Mr.  Edward  Woodman,  senior,  and  to  my 
mother,  to  pay  within  two  years  £l^  for  me,  I  Therefore 
convey  to  them  my  now  dwelling  house,  houses  and  barnes, 
orchard  &  pastures,  and  all  my  land  and  meadow,  which  was 
lately  made  over  to  me  b)-  m)'  ffather,  viz'  all  m}^  plow  land 
and  pasture  lying  by  and  adioyneing  to  my  dwelling  house, 
as  also  all  the  plow  land  upon  the  north  west  syde  of  the 
street,  lying  upon  the  westward  syde  of  my  house,  the  sayd 
street  being  called  the  new  streete,  as  also  three  acres  of 
meadow,  &c."  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  4,  leaf  434). 

Nov.  8,  1695,  Jonathan  Woodman  gave  a  mortgage  deed 
of  all  his  real  estate  to  Tristram  Coffin  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book 
4,  page  431 )  ;  and  May  7,  1697,  Tristram  Coffin  reconveyed 
to  Jonathan  Woodman  all  the  property  covered  by  this  mort- 
crao-e  deed,  "  including  seven  acres  of  upland  bounded  north- 
easterly  by  y'-'  River  Merrimack,  southeasterly  by  y"  land  of 
William  Titcomb,  southwest  by  y=  land  of  Isaac  Bayley,  & 
northwest  by  y^  lane  commonly  called  Mr  :  Woodman's  Lane  " 
(Essex  Deeds,  book  1 1,  page  254). 

His  ship-yard  was  probably  located  near  the  foot  of  that 

♦Maritime  Records,  Massachusetts  Archives,  volu;ne  61,  page  126. 


278  OULD   XEIVBCRY 

lane  which  was  laid  out  in  1788  by  the  town  of  Newbury  port, 
and  named  Kent  Street.  His  will,  dated  Nov.  15,  1706,  and 
proved  Feb.  3,  1706-7,  gives  to  his  son  Jonathan  "one  half 
that  ship  timber  1  bought  at  Haverhill  this  Fall." 

In  the  division  of  the  estate  of  George  Carr,  who  died 
previous  to  April  10,  1683,  Carr's  Island,  with  dwelling-house, 
etc.,  was  given  to  his  widow  during  her  lifetime  ;  and  mention 
is  also  made  of  an  old  building  yard,  and  "  the  pri\-elege  of 
the  dock  below  the  lowest  building  place  for  laying  of  vessels, 
graving  and  laying  of  boates." 

Richard  Carr,  son  of  George  Carr,  continued  the  business 
of  shi})-building  on  the  island.  Among  the  original  papers 
and  documents  on  file  at  the  Essex  Institute,  Salem,  Mass., 
is  a  written  contract,  of  which  the  following  is  an  exact 
cop)' :  — 

Articles  of  Agreem*  made  and  Concluded  this  fourth  day  of  Novem- 
ber, An5  Dom'  sixteen  hundred  ninty  &  six  &  in  the  eighth  year  of  the 
Reigne  of  our  sovring  Lord  William  the  third  by  the  grace  of  God  of 
England  Scotland  ffrance  and  Ireland  King  Defend''  of  the  Irish  lies 
Between  Maj''  John  March  of  Newbury  in  the  County  of  Essex  in  the 
Province  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  in  New  England  of  one  p'-'  And 
one  Richard  Carr  of  Salisbury  in  the  county  &  province  aforesd  Ship- 
wright of  the  other  p'> 
Wittnesses 

That  the  sd  Richard  Carr  doth  hereby  oblig  himself  his  heyrs  ex- 
ecuf"  and  Administraf"  to  deliver  to  the  sd  Maj""  John  March  his 
heyrs  execut""^  administraf"  a  good  vessell  of  about  forty  foote  bv  the 
Keele  and  about  sixteen  foote  by  the  beame  and  about  eight  foote  & 
four  inches  deepe  in  the  Hold,  wch  said  vessell  stands  now  on  the 
stocks  on  the  Hand  knowne  by  the  name  of  Mr.  Carrs  Hand  in  Sals- 
bury,  the  said  vessell  to  be  by  the  said  Carr  compleatly  finished,  as  to 
the  Hull  or  body  as  also  w"'  Masts  yards  and  Boomes  &  Bowsprit 
sutieabel  for  a  Briginteen,  the  said  Maj""  March  to  provid  all  Iron  work 
excepting  Deck  rayles  and  other  rayles,  the  said  vessell  to  be  delivrd  a 
floate  to  the  sd  Majf  March  compleatly  finished  as  to  the  carpenter 
work  to  a  cleete,  at  or  before  the  last  day  of  January  next  ensuing  the 
date  heerof  on  tlie  forfeiture  of  tliree  hundred  ixninds  in  good  and 
Lawful  mony  of  New  England.  The  sd  .Maj''  Jolin  Marcli,  liis  heyrs. 
execuf"  and  adminst""  to  pay  or  cause  to  be  paid  to  the  said  Richard 
Carr,   liis  heyrs,   execut".  adminisf"  or   Assignes   the   full  X:  iusl   sum  of 


OLD   SHIP-YARDS  279 

one  hundred  &  sixty  pounds  in  form  &  maner  following,  viz  y'  he  y  sd 
Carr  to  allow  the  sd  I\Iaj''  March  so  much  as  he  stands  now  indebted  to 
him  for  dealing  formerly  between  them  and  twenty  pounds  in  good  and 
Lawfull  mony  of  New  England  at  the  sealing  heerof  &  twenty  pounds 
in  good  and  Lawfull  mony  of  New  England  at  or  before  the  last  day  of 
this  instant  November,  and  twenty  pounds  in  good  and  Lawful  mony 
of  New  England  at  or  before  the  sixteenth  day  of  January  next,  and 
the  remainder  of  the  said  sum  of  one  hundred  &  sixty  pound  to  be  paid 
upon  the  delivery  of  sd  vessell  compleatly  finished  as  above  sd,  the  Hull 
or  body  of  the  afore  sd  vessell  wth  all  masts,  yards,  boome,  Bowsprit  «& 
all  other  carpenters  work  finished  to  ye  sea  —  to  a  cleete  to  be  deliv"!  to 
sd  March  or  his  order  a  floate  in  Merimack  River.  In  confirmation  of 
all  &  singuler  the  premises  the  partyes  above  named  to  these  articles 
of  agreement  have  heerunto  set  theyr  hands  &  seals  the  day  &  year 
above  sd. 

(.)  allso  the  sd  Carr  doth 
Signed,  sealed  &  interchangeably      ingage  before  by  :  sealling 
delivered  in  presens  of  us  hereof  to  calke ;  recalke  and 

James  march  grave  the  above  sd  vessell :  and 

Edward  Carleton  doe  all  ye  above  sd  worke  work- 

Thomas   Carletox  man  like  : 

Richard  Carr  {Seal) 

Richard  Carr  had  charge  of  the  ferry  at  Carr's  Island,  and 
was  also  engaged  in  ship-building  until  his  death  Sept.  11, 
1727.  In  the  inventory  of  his  estate  mention  is  made  of  "a 
sloop  on  ye  stocks  valued  at  £,60  1 1.5-."  For  further  informa- 
tion see  the  pamphlet  entitled  ''Historical  Sketch  of  Ship- 
building on  the  Merrimack  River,"  published  in  1877, 
page    17. 

At  this  date  there  were  at  least  twenty-five  or  thirty  ship- 
yards on  the  west  bank  of  the  Merrimack  River,  between 
Colonel  Daniel  Pierce's  farm  and  Bartlett's  Cove.  Most  of 
these  old  yards  have  long  since  been  absorbed  by  other  in- 
dustries ;  only  a  few  at  the  present  time  remain   unoccupied. 

Commencing  at  the  lower  end  of  the  town,  near  the  foot 
of  Marlborough  Street  was  the  building-place  occupied  by 
Gideon  Woodwell  and  afterward  by  his  son  and  grandson. 
Vessels  varying  in  size  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  and  fifty 
tons'  burthen  were  built  there  a  century  and  a  half  ago. 


28o  OULD   NEWBURY 

At  the  foot  of  Hromfickl  Street,  extending  from  Merriniack 
River  to  Hancock  Street,  was  the  yard  where  Mr.  William 
Gerrish  carried  on  the  business  of  ship-building  for  many 
years. 

Between  Hromtield  and  1^'rankiin  Streets  was  another  ship- 
yard, occupied  at  the  beginning  of  the  present  century  by 
Messrs.  Coker,  Atkinson,  Hunt,  and  Pierce. 

Rali)h  Cross  came  to  Newbury  about  the  year  1728.  He 
bought  land  at  the  foot  of  Lime  Street,  and  established  him- 
self in  business  there  as  a  ship-builder.  His  house  was  on  the 
lower  side  of  Water  Street  adjoining  his  building-yard.  He 
died  Jan.  4.  1/88,  aged  eighty-two,  and  was  buried  in  the  Old 
Hill  burying  ground.  After  his  decease  Jacob  Tucker,  Elias 
Cook,  and  others  continued  the  same  business  in  the  same 
place  for  twent\'-five  or  thirty  years.  Two  small  dwelling- 
houses,  and  a  grocery  store  owned  b)'  Mr.  Isaac  Poor,  now 
occupy  the  Water  Street  front  of  this  old  ship-yard  ;  and  the 
land  in  the  rear  is  a  part  of  the  lumber  yard  of  Edward  Per- 
kins &  Co. 

In  1695,  Thomas  Johnson  built  one  or  more  ships  at  the 
foot  of  Chandler's  Lane  (now  I'ederal  Street),  between  the 
Merrimack  River  and  the  land  of  Colonel  Daniel  Pierce  ;  and, 
in  1698,  P>.ra  Cottle  occupied  the  yard,  and  built  several 
vessels  there.  In  the  year  1700,  John  Stickney  was  granted 
land  for  a  building-yard  "near  the  place  where  Mr.  Johnson 
built  a  \-essel  at  the  lower  end  of  Chandler's  Lane." 

At  a  later  date,  between  P'ederal  Street  and  Fair  Street,  on 
land  afterward  used  as  a  mast-  and  spar-}'ard  by  Messrs.  Tit- 
comb  &  Lunt,  was  the  building  })lace  owned  and  occupied  by 
Stephen  and  Ralph  Cross,  sons  of  Ralph  Cross,  Sr.  During 
the  Revolutionary  War  the  frigates  "Hancock,"  "Boston," 
and  "  i'rotector"  were  built  in  this  yard  for  the  Continental 
(jovernment. 

The  Middle  .Ship-yard,  near  Watts'  Cellar,  was  for  many 
years  after  the  settlement  of  the  town  merel_\-  a  la.iding- 
jilace,  for  the  unloading  of  haw  Unnber,  and  other  mei'chan- 
dise.      .Subse(|ueinl\'    this  "  ri\er    lot"    of    common    antl    undi- 


OLD   SHIP-YARDS  281 

videcl  land  was  rented  by  the  proprietors  of  Newbury  to 
ship-owners  and  ship-builders,  and  vessels  were  built  here 
from  time  to  time  until  the  close  of  the  last  century.  Under 
date  of  March  11,  1711-12,  the  town  "voted  that  Major 
Henry  Somerby,  Capt.  Sergant,  &  Lieut.  Titcomb  shall  have 
power  to  let  ye  building  yard  near  Watts  cellar  (so  called) 
unto  Col.  Patridge  and  Mr.  Fawn  Clement  and  Mr.  Hodge 
on  such  terms  as  they  agree  for." 

March  5,  1768,  a  committee  of  the  proprietors  of  the  town 
of  Newbury,  consisting  of  John  Brown,  Joseph  Coffin,  and 
Thomas  Woodbridge,  for  ^"200,  gave  a  deed  of  the  Middle 
ship-yard  to  Samuel  Gerrish  (book  127,  leaf  190). 

May  30,  1 77 1,  another  deed  confirming  and  ratifying  the 
above  conveyance  was  made  by  Moses  Noyes,  Moses  Little, 
and  Samuel  Noyes,  committee,  to  Samuel  Gerrish  (book  130, 
leaf  7). 

March  8,  1768,  Samuel  Gerrish  leased  to  Thomas  Wood- 
bridge  for  ten  years  "that  tract  of  land  in  Newburyport 
known  by  the  name  of  the   Middle  ship  yard." 

It  would  be  impossible  within  the  limits  of  this  sketch  to 
describe  in  detail  all  the  ship-yards  established  in  Newbury 
subsequently  to  the  year  1700.  In  addition  to  those  already 
named,  Samuel  Moggaridge  owned  a  yard  near  the  foot  of 
what  is  now  Forrester  Street.  This  yard  was  afterward 
occupied  by  Jonathan  Merrill,  Nathan  Merrill,  and  Orlando 
B.  Merrill,  and  at  a  later  date  by  Stephen  Jackman  and 
George  W.  Jackman,  Jr.  During  the  war  of  the  Rebellion 
the  gunboats  "  Marblehead "  and  "  Ascutney "  were  built 
here,  and  in  1866  and  1867  the  large  ocean  steamers, 
"  Erie  "   and  "  Ontario,"   were  launched  from  this  yard. 

In  1807,  Elisha  Briggs  came  to  Newbury  from  Pembroke, 
Mass.,  and  established  himself  in  business  as  a  ship-builder  at 
the  foot  of  Ashland  Street.  His  yard  was  afterward  en- 
larged, and  occupied  by  Messrs.  William  Currier  &  James 
L.  Townsend,  who  built  there  many  famous  clipper  ships. 
Subsequently  Messrs.  Charles  H.  Currier  &  Co.,  Colby  & 
Lunt,    John    Currier,    3d,   and  George    E.    Currier  continued 


!82 


OULD    NEWBURY 


the   work    of   ship-])uildii\i;-   in    that   locality   down    to   a   very 
recent  date. 

At  the  foot  of  Oakland  Street  I^ben  Manson  built  many 
ships  and  barks  from  the  year  1853  to  1873,  and  Messrs. 
Atkinson  &  l-'illmore  carried  on  a  prosperous  and  successful 
business  at  the  foot  of  Titcomb  Street  from  1868  to  1885. 


JOHN    CURRIER,    JR.'S.   SHIP-YARD,    1857. 


llie  yard  on  Poore's  Lane  (now  Merrimack  Court)  was 
laid  out  and  prepared  for  ship-buildini;"  purposes  in  1833.  It 
was  part  of  the  estate  of  Samuel  I'oore  previous  to  the  )'ear 
1700,  and  after  his  decease  twelve  acres  of  this  low  meadow 
land  were  sold  to  Samuel  Moggaridge. 

Now  II,  1766,  John  Moggaridge,  son  of  Samuel  Mogga- 
ridge,  sold  to  Abel  Merrill,  of  Xewbuiyport,  shipwright,  for 
the   sum    of   X365     1 2^.    Gd.,    land   extending    from    Moody's 


OLD   SHIP-YARDS  283 

Lane,  so  called,  in  a  northerly  direction,  to  land  sold  by 
Rachel  Poor  to  Timothy  Remick,  and  thence  easterly  to  the 
Merrimack  River  (Essex  Deeds,  book  121,  page  197). 

Feb.  28,  1795,  Anna  Coffin,  of  Andover,  widow,  Anna 
Brewer,  of  Andover,  woman,  and  Elizabeth  Coffin  and  Sarah 
Coffin,  both  of  said  Andover,  single  women,  for  ^360,  con- 
veyed to  Ebenezer  Savory,  of  Methuen,  tanner,  twelve  acres 
and  thirty  rods  of  land,  and  house  and  barn  thereon,  in 
Newbury,  bounded  northeasterly  by  Merrimack  River,  south- 
easterly by  a  driftway,  southwesterly  and  westerly  by  a  two- 
rod  way  running  to  Moggaridge  Point,  so  called,  and  northerly 
by  a  public  landing-place,  being  the  same  tract  of  land  which 
John  Moggaridge  conveyed  to  Abel  Merrill  Nov.  17,  1766 
(book  159,  leaf  54). 

May  28,  1833,  P2benezer  Savory  sold  to  John  Currier,  Jr., 
of  Newbury,  shipwright,  a  portion  of  the  above  described 
premises,  beginning  at  the  westerly  corner  of  Poore's  Lane, 
so  called,  thence  running  south  by  land  of  George  W.  Jack- 
man,  thence  by  land  of  the  grantor,  thence  by  the  Merri- 
mack River  and  town  landing,  thence  by  the  said  Poore's 
Lane  to  the  bound  begun  at,  containing  about  five  acres  and 
thirty-six  rods  (book  268,  leaf  299). 

In  1 83 1,  Mr.  Currier  commenced  work  as  master-builder 
in  the  yard  previously  occupied  by  Jonathan  and  Nathan 
Merrill,  and  three  years  later  removed  to  the  land  purchased 
as  above.  This  lot,  with  several  acres  adjoining,  was  im- 
proved and  occupied  by  him,  as  a  ship-yard  for  more  than 
fifty  years. 

John  Currier,  Jr.,  was  born  April  14,  1802.  He  was 
the  son  of  John  and  Hannah  (Coffin)  Currier,  of  Newbury, 
and  a  descendant,  of  the  seventh  generation,  in  a  direct 
line,  from  Richard  Currier,  who  settled  in  Salisbury  in  1639. 
He  married  Clarissa  Carr  Dec.  28,  1830,  and  died  Sept.  2, 
1887. 

During  his  long  and  active  life  he  built  nearly  one  hundred 
large  vessels,  with  a  total  registered  capacity  of  more  than 
90,000  tons.  In  April,  1883,  he  launched  the  ship  "Mary 
L.   Cushing,"  owned   by  John   N.   Cushing,  Esq.,  and  others 


JOHN    CURRIER.    JR. 


OLD    SIIir-YARDS  285 

of  Newburyport.  This  ship  was  the  last  merchant-ship  built 
in  the  state  of  Massachusetts.  Since  that  date  the  business 
has  steadily  declined,  and  is  now  practically  extinct  on  the 
Merrimack  River. 

In  the  pamphlet  previously  mentioned,  giving  a  brief 
sketch  of  ship-building  on  this  river,  the  reader  will  find  a 
list  of  the  vessels  registered  in  Newburyport  from  April  i, 
1793,  to  the  close  of  the  year  1876.  Since  the  publication 
of  the  pamphlet  the  missing  records,  from  the  organization 
of  the  United  States  government  to  April  i,  1793,  have 
been  supplied  by  the  treasury  department  at  Washington  ; 
and  the  names  of  the  vessels  built  in  this  revenue  district 
during  that  period  are  printed  in  the  appendix  to  this 
volume. 


INDIAN   ATTACK   ON   THE   FAMILY   OF  JOHN 
BROWN   AT  TURKEY   HILL. 


Thomas  Brown,  weaver,  came  to  New^bury,  in  1635,  from 
Malford,  England.  His  son  Francis  Brown  married  Mary 
Johnson  Nov.  21,  1653,  and  settled  in  the  vicinity  of  Turkey 
Hill. 

In  the  Proprietors'  Records  of  the  town  of  Newbury  are 
the  following  entries  :  — 

At  a  Geiierall  meeting  of  the  Towne  may  7"'  1659 

Francis  Brown  proposed  to  Exchang  about  an  hundred  acres  of  liis 
ffarme  that  lyeth  in  or  about  the  Owle  swamp  to  be  laid  out  upon  the 
southwesterly  part  of  Turke\'  hill.  The  Towne  Granted  it,  and  ap- 
pointed Richard  Knight,  Archelaus  Woodman,  William  Titcomb  & 
John  Bayley  to  veiw  it  and  to  lay  it  out  so  it  be  not  prejuditiall  for  the 
Towne. 

According  to  the  order  of  the  Towne  May  7*  1659  we  have  veiwed 
ffrancis  Brownes  land  by  Turkey  hill,  and  we  tind  at  the  Swamp  called 
the  Owle  Swamp  a  parcell  of  land  joyning  to  Georg  Littles  on  the  west 
and  so  Joyning  unto  the  Comon  on  the  other  Quarters. 

Which  in  Consideration  of  ffrancis  Browne  his  resigning  up  into  the 
Townes  hands  one  hundred  and  three  acres  of  Land  in  the  place  afore 
said,  which  he  doth  by  these  presents.  We  have  laid  out  unto  ffrancis 
Browne  an  hundred  and  three  acres  of  land  as  followeth  (that  is  to  say): 
begiiiing  by  a  Marked  tree  by  a  stake  on  the  side  of  Turkey  hill  and 
so  ruiiing  on  a  south  west  poynt  unto  a  wall  nut  tree  by  a  Brooke  one 
hundred  and  twenty  Rod,  being  in  all  on  the  Northwest  poynt  two  hun- 
dred and  twelve  Rods,  and  from  thence  ruiiing  easterly  an  hundred  and 
twelve  rods  unto  an  other  marked  tree,  and  from  thenc  ruiiing  Northerly 
eighty  rods  unto  a  white  oak  marked  uppon  a  little  Hill  by  the  Birchen 
meadows,  and  from  thenc  runing  over  the  meadow  to  the  old  bounds, 
and  so  runing  to  a  poynt  wher  we  began. 

Richard   Kxight 
Archelaus  Woodmax 
William  Titcomb 
John  Baylev 

pr  Anthony  Somerby 


288  OCLD   XEWBURY 

Francis  Brown  had  nine  children.  A  son,  John  Brown, 
born  May  13,  1665,  married  Ruth  Huse  Au^^  20,  1683,  and 
lived  with  his  father  on  the  farm  on  the  southwesterly  side 
of  Turkey  Hill. 

On  the  afternoon  of  Oct.  7,  1695,  a  party  of  Indians,  not 
more  than  five  or  six  in  number,  secreted  themselves  near 
the  house  ;  and,  after  the  male  members  of  the  family  had 
departed  with  a  load  of  farm  produce,  the  Indians  left  their 
place  of  concealment,  and,  stealthily  approaching  the  house, 
tomahawked  a  girl  standing  at  the  front  door,  seized  such 
articles  of  household  furniture  and  wearing  apparel  as  they 
could  conveniently  take  away,  and  hastily  departed  with 
nine  captives,  all  women  and  children.  It  is  probable  that 
some  members  of  Francis  Brown's  family  were  included  in 
this  number.  The  names  and  ages  of  the  children  of  John 
and  Ruth  Brown  at  this  time  were  as  follows  :  — 

John,  born  Oct.  27.  1683,  twelve  year.s  old. 
Isaac,  born  Feb.  4.  1685,  ten  years,  eight  months  old. 
Thomas,  born  Jan.  i.  1689,  five  years,  ten  months  old. 
Joseph,  born  Nov.  5,  1690,  nearly  five  years  old. 
Abel,  born  April  4,  1693,  two  years,  six  months  old. 
Ruth,  born  July,  1695,  three  months  old. 

Only  one  inmate  of  the  house,  a  girl,  escaped  capture ; 
and,  after  the  departure  of  the  Indians,  she  gave  the  alarm. 
Colonel  Daniel  Pierce,  of  Newbury,  immediately  notified 
Colonel  Appleton  and  Colonel  Wade,  of  Ipswich,  that  assist- 
ance was  needed,  and  rec|uested  that  men  be  sent  to  range 
the  woods  toward  Bradford  and  Andover,  to  |n-event  the 
escape  of  the  Indians,   if  possible. 

According  to  tradition,  the  captives  were  recovered  on  the 
northwesterly  side  of  Pipe  Stave  Hill,  near  a  small  stream 
that  emi)ties  into  the  Merrimack,  now  known  as  Indian  Ri\er. 
The  number  killed  or  seriously  injureil  is  somewhat  uncertain, 
as  the  re[)orts  of  the  attack  antl  pursuit  are  contradictor)'  and 
confusing. 

Cotton  Mather,  in  x'olume  2,  book  7,  article  23,  of  the 
"  Magnalia,"  says  :  — 


THE   FAMILY   OF  JOHN  BROWN  289 

The  Indians  entered  the  house  of  one  John  Brown  at  Newbury,  carry- 
ing away  nine  persons  with  them.  Captain  Greenleaf,  pursuing  the 
murderers,  was  wounded  by  them,  but  retook  the  captives.  The 
Indians,  however,  had  beaten  them  so  unmercifully  that  they  all  after- 
ward died  except  one  lad  who  was  only  hurt  in  the  shoulder.  Some  of 
them  lingered  for  six  months,  and  some  for  more  than  a  year,  suffering 
from  their  wounds. 

Judge  Samuel  Sewall  in  his  diary  says  :  — 

Oct.  7,  1695,  Jn"  Brown's  family  of  Turkey  hill  are  led  captive.  All 
are  brought  back  save  one  boy  that  was  killed ;  knock'd  the  rest  on  the 
head,  save  an  infant. 

Rev.  John  Pike  in  his  journal  says,  "The  captives  were  all 
retaken,  but  some  died  of  their  wounds." 

Oct.  8,  1695,  Colonel  Thomas  Wade  wrote  from  Ipswich 
as  follows  :  — 

Honored  Sir, 

Just  now  Captain  Wicom  brings  information  that  the  last  night  Cap- 
tain Greenleaf  with  a  party  of  men  met  with  the  enemy  by  the  river  side, 
have  redeemed  all  the  captives  but  one,  which  they  doubt  is  killed. 
Three  of  the  Indians  got  into  a  canoe  and  made  escape,  and  the  other 
two  ran  into  the  woods.  Captain  Greenleaf  is  wounded  in  the  side  and 
arm.  how  much  we  know  not.  which  is  all  at  present  from  your  servant. 

Thomas  Wade. 

On  the  5th  of  March,  1 695-^6,  Captain  Greenleaf  addressed 
the  following  petition  to  the  General  Court  :  — 

To  the   Hon''i<^  William   Stoughton   Esq-'  Lieu^  Govern''  &c.  the  Council 

and    Representatives   of   his   Ma'-^'-   Province  of  the   Massachusetts 

Bay  in  New  England,  convened  in  General  Assembly,  March   5"' 

1695-6. 

The    Petition    of     Cap'    Stephen    Greenleaf e    of     Newbury    Humbly 

sheweth  That  upon  the   7'"  of   October  last,  about  three  o'clock  in  the 

afternoon,  a  party  of   Indians  surprised  a  Family  at  Turkey  hill  in  sd 

town,   captivated  nine  persons,  women  and   Children,  ritfed  the   house, 

carrying  away  the   Bedding  and  other  Goods.      Only  one  person  in   the 

House   escaped  ;   and  gave'  notice  to  the  next   Family  and  they  to  the 

Town.      Upon  the  Alarm  your   Pef  with  a  party  of  men  pursued  after 

the  Enemy,  endeavoring  to  line  the   River   Merrimack  to  prevent  their 


290  OULD   NEWBURY 

passini^  over,  l)y  wiiicli  meanes  the  Captives  were  recovered  and  brought 
l)ack. 

The  Enemy  hxy  in  a  Gully  hard  by  the  Highwav,  and  aljout  nine  at 
night  made  a  shot  at  your  Petitioner  and  shot  him  through  the  Wrist 
between  the  bones,  and  also  made  a  large  wound  in  his  side,  Which 
wounds  have  been  very  painful  and  costly  to  your  Pef^  in  the  cure  of 
them  and  have  in  a  great  measure  utterly  taken  away  the  use  of  his  left 
hand,  and  wholly  taken  him  off  from  his  Imployment  this  Winter. 

Your  Petitioner  therefore  humbly  prayes  this  Honf'''^'  Court  that  they 
would  make  him  Such  Compensation  as  shall  seem  fit,  which  he  shall 
thankfully  acknowledge,  and  doubts  not  but  will  be  an  Encouragemen*  to 
others  speedily  to  relieve  their  Neighbours  when  assaulted  by  so  bar- 
barous an  Enemy. 

And  your  Pef  shall  ever  pray,  &c. 

Stephen  Greenleaf.* 

In  an.swer  to  thi.s  petition  a  vote  was  pas.sed  and  approved 
March  7,  1695-6,  and  embodied  in  Chapter  63  of  the  Laws 
of  the  Province  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  as  follows  :  — 

Upon  reading  the  petition  of  Capt"  Stephen  Greenleaf  of  Newbury, 
lately  wounded  and  maimed  in  his  maj*>''*  service,  praying  some  allow- 
ance and  compensation  for  his  smart,  cure,  loss  of  time  and  of  the  use 
of  his  left  hand, — 

Voted,  a  concurrance  with  the  representatives,  that  the  said  Captain 
Stephen  (Greenleaf  be  paid,  out  of  the  province  treasury,  the  sum  of 
forty  pounds,  which  shall  be  in  full  of  what  he  hath  been  out  upon  cure 
and  what  yearly  pension  he  might  have  expected  had  not  this  been 
granted. 

The  tree  in  the  immediate  foreground  of  the  half-tone  print 
on  page  286,  marks  the  spot  where  the  old  house  stood  when 
the  Indians  made  their  attack  upon  the  defenceless  familv. 
The  house  was  bin'lton  the  southwesterly  side  of  Turkey  Hill, 
about  two  hundred  rods  in  an  easterly  direction  from  the 
present  residence  of  Mr.  Charles  Brown,  who  is  a  lineal 
descendant,  of  the  se\'enth  generation,  fi-om  John  i^rown,  and 
the  present  owner  of  the  fai'm. 

Coffin,  in  his  Histor}'  of  Xewbiu-}-,  sa\s,  "This  is  the  only 
instance  in  which  the  Indians  either  atlackctl,  capli\ated,  or 
killed  an)'  of  the  iidiabitants  of  the  town." 

*  MassacluisL'tts  .\rcliives,  volume  70,  page  2^>7. 


191 


BYFIELD   PARISH. 


In  Ma}',  1635,  the  town  of  Newbury  was  incorporated,  and 
the  same  month  the  General  Court  ordered  John  Humphrey, 
John  Endicott,  Nathaniel  Turner,  and  William  Trask  "  to  set 
out  a  farm  for  Mr.  Dummer,  about  the  falls  of  Newberr}',  not 
exceeding  the  quantity  of  five  hundred  acres,  provided  it  be 
not  prejudicial  to  Newberry"  ;  and  at  the  same  time  liberty 
was  granted  to  Mr.  (Richard)  Dummer  and  Mr.  (John) 
Spencer  "to  build  a  mill  and  weire  at  the  falls  of   Newbury." 

The  court  also  ordered  "  that  Mr.  (Richard)  Dummer  and 
Mr.  Bartholomew  shall  set  out  a  convenient  quantity  of  land 
within  the  bounds  of  Newberry  for  the  keeping  of  the  sheep 
and  cattle  that  came  over  in  the  Dutch  shipps  this  yeare,  and 
to  belong  to  the  owners  of  said  cattle."  Coffin,  in  the  His- 
tory of  Newbury  (page  18),  says,  "The  tract  of  land  which 
was  set  apart  as  the  place  for  pasturing  these  cattle  was  near 
the  falls  of  Newbury.  Of  this  land,  Mr.  John  Spencer  had 
a  mill  lot  of  fifty  acres,  Mr.  Richard  Dummer  three  hundred 
acres,  Mr.  Henry  Sewall  five  hundred  acres,  Mr.  John  Clark 
four  hundred  acres." 

In  1637,  there  was  considerable  religious  excitement  in  the 
colony,  and  the  General  Court  disfranchised  or  banished  a 
large  number  of  the  followers  of  Mrs.  Hutchinson.  Among 
those  ordered  to  be  disarmed  were  Richard  Dummer,  John 
Spencer,  and  Nicholas  Easton.  Spencer  returned  to  Eng- 
land, Easton  went  to  Rhode  Island,  but  Dummer  remained 
in  Newbury. 

In  1640,  contributions  were  sent  to  Governor  Winthrop 
from  several  towns  in  the  colony  to  make  up  the  severe  pecu- 
niary loss  he  had  suffered  through  the  unfaithfulness  of  his 
bailiff  ;  and  Richard  Dummer,  with   great   liberality,  gave  one 


BY  FIELD    PARISH  293 

hundred  pounds.  Savage,  commenting  on  this  voluntary 
contribution,  says  :  "  The  generosity  of  Dummer  is  above  all 
praise.  His  contribution  is  fifty  per  cent,  above  the  whole 
tax  of  his  town,  and  equal  to  half  the  benevolence  of  the 
whole  metropolis  ;  and  yet  he  had  been  a  sufferer  under  the 
mistaken  views  of  Winthrop  and  other  triumphant  sound 
religionists." 

The  fertility  of  the  soil  and  the  large  cjuantity  of  salt 
marsh,  convenient  for  the  support  of  cattle,  near  the  falls  of 
the  Ouascacjuncjuen  (now  Parker)  River,  soon  attracted  a 
number  of  settlers  to  that  locality  ;  but  the  distance  from  the 
meeting-house  was  so  great  that  it  soon  became  necessary 
to  establish  a  new  parish  with  bounds  and  limits,  extending 
about  two  miles  in  either  direction  from  the  falls,  and  includ- 
ing parts  of  the  towns  of  Newbur)^  and  Rowley. 

In  1 701,  the  tax  imposed  upon  the  inhabitants  in  that 
vicinity  for  the  support  of  the  gospel  was  abated  to  one-half 
the  customary  rate;  and,  in  1702,  a  meeting-house  was  built 
near  the  place  where  the  present  one  now  stands,  and  the 
parish  was  called  "  Rowlbury." 

It  is  evident,  however,  that  neither  the  name  nor  boun- 
daries of  the  parish  were  definitely  fixed  upon  until  two  years 
later.  Judge  Sewall,  in  the  following  letter  to  Colonel  By- 
field,  gives  Feb.  24,  1703-4,  as  the  date  when  "the  inhabi- 
tants upon  the  upper  part  of  the  River  Parker  .  .  .  agreed  to 
have  the  place  called  Byfield  "  :  — 


To  Col.  Nath'l  Byfield  at  Bristow 

March  4,  i  703-4. 

My  Brother  Moodey  of  Newbury  came  to  visit  us  this  week :  He 
tells  me  that  the  Inhabitants  upon  the  upper  part  of  the  River  Parker, 
who  have  Mr.  Moses  Hale  for  their  Minister,  having  made  his  house 
habitable,  took  the  advantage  of  Meeting  in  it  upon  the  four  and 
twentieth  of  February  last,  being  the  fifth  day  of  the  week,  to  consult 
about  the  concerns  of  their  Infant-Parish:  At  which  time  they  unani- 
mously agreed  to  have  the  Place  called  Byfield.  My  Brother  is  to  carry 
home  a  Book  to  Record  their  Transactions  relating  to  their  settleing  the 
Worship  of  God   in  that  Quarter;   and  this  among  the  rest,  I   presume 


294  OULD   NEWBURY 

thev  will  henceforwTird  look  upon  vou  as  their  God-Father:  and  will  be 
ready  gratefully  to  Acknowledge  any  Countenance  and  Favour  you 
shall  please  to  afford  them.  S    S  * 

The  house  that  Judge  Sewall  says  was  "  made  habitable  " 
for  Rev.  Moses  Hale  was  built  upon  land  sold  by  John 
Dummer  April  lO,  1703,  for  and  in  consideration  of  ^9,  "to 
Lieut.  \Mlliam  Moody  of  Newbiu-}',  Henry  Poor  of  Rowley, 
and  the  rest  of  the  proprietors  of  the  meeting  house  lately 
erected  ui)on  the  division  line  between  Newbury  and  Rowley 
neere  the  falls,  .  .  .  nine  acres  of  land  in  two  fields,  where 
the  parsonage  house  is  to  stand."  This  deed  has  never  been 
recorded.  The  original  was  in  the  possession  of  Mrs.  Isaac 
\\\  Wheelwright  at  the  time  of  her  decease. 

John  Dummer  also  sold  June  9,  1703,  to  Rev.  Moses  Hale, 
"our  minister,  one  acre  of  land  in  Newbury  on  the  way  lead- 
ing from  m}'  now  dwelling  house  to  the  Falls  Meeting  house, 
westerly  by  the  Parsonage  land,  northerly  and  easterly  by 
land  of  the  grantor"    (book   15,  leaf  305). 

Judge  Sewall  was  evidently  deeply  interested  in  the  wel- 
fare of  the  new  parish,  and  on  the  first  day  of  April  sent  the 
following  letter  to  his  brother  William  Moody,  who  was  one 
of  the  proprietors  of  the  new  meeting-house  to  whom  the 
land  for  a  parsonage  was  sold,  as  above  stated  ;  — 

Loving  brother  Boston.  April  i^'  1704. 

After  your  being  here  last  I  writt  a  letter  to  Colonel  Bvfield  and  in- 
formed him  that  you  had  named  your  infant  parish  Byfield.  and  would 
from  henceforth  look  upon  him  as  your  patron,  and  be  ready  gratefully 
to  acknowledge  any  countenance  or  favour  he  should  be  pleased  to 
afford  you.  To  this  effect  in  more  words.  This  dav  I  received  a  letter 
from  Colonel  Byfield,  in  which  are  these  words  : 

"  I  am  surprised  at  the  account  you  give  me  of  a  new  town  upon  the 
river  Parker  near  Newbury.  How  they  hitt  upon  my  name  I  can't 
imagine.  I  heartily  wish  them  prosperity :  and  if  any  respect  to  me 
was  the  cause,  it  is  an  obligation  upon  me,  (when  tiod  shall  enable  me) 
to  study  how  I  may  be  serviceable  to  them."' 

I  called  it  only  a  parish.  What  if  Mr.  Hale  should  write  a  letter  to 
Colonel    Byfield.  intimating  the  matter  of  fact,  tlial   it  was  in  regard   to 

*  Letter  llnnk.  xdhimc  i,  page  296. 


BY  FIELD   PARISH  295 

him.  You  have  been  informed  of  his  parentage.  He  has  only  two 
daughters.  Madam  Lyde  and  Madam  Taylor.  I  believe  he  is  a  good 
man.  and  a  fast  friend,  very  industrious  and  thorow  in  promoting  what 
he  undertakes.  Samuel  Sewall.* 

Nathaniel  Byfield  was  the  son  of  Rev.  Richard  Ryfield, 
of  Long  D>rtton,  Sussex,  England,  and  the  youngest  of 
twenty-one  children.  He  came  to  Boston  in  1674,  at  the  age 
of  twenty-one,  and  on  April  25,  1676,  sent  the  following 
petition  to  the  governor  and  council  sitting  in  Boston  :  — 

The  Petition  of  Nathaniel  Byfield  Humbly  Sheweth,  That  your 
Petitioner  is  a  stranger  in  the  country  and  lately  Married,  and  is  now 
Prest  to  goe  out  to  warre  against  the  Indians.  And  whereas  the  Law 
of  God  is  plain  in  24  Deut.  5.  That  when  a  man  hath  taken  a  new 
wife,  he  shall  not  goe  out  to  warre,  neither  shall  he  be  charged  with  any 
business,  but  he  shall  be  free  at  home  one  yeare.  Your  petitioner  doth 
humbly  request  the  favour  of  y^'  Honours  to  grant  him  the  Priviledge 
and  benefit  of  the  said  law  and  to  grant  him  a  discharge  from  the  pres- 
ent Service.      So  shall  he  pray  for  your  Honours. 

Nathaniel  Byfield.* 

Colonel  Byfield,  while  appreciating  the  honor  conferred 
upon  him  by  the  parish,  did  not  respond  with  alacrity  to  the 
suggestion  that  some  substantial  gift  from  him  would  be 
acceptable.  After  two  or  three  years  of  patient  waiting. 
Judge  Sewall  ventured  to  call  his  attention  to  the  subject  in 
the  following  letter  :  — 

To  Nathanael  Byfield  Esqr  Jan''  6'h  lyof 

Sir,—  The  inclosed  News-Letter  mentions  the  little  Parish,  that  bears 
your  name,  and  was  so  called  for  your  sake.  The  Parishioners  have 
struggled  with  many  difficulties  in  their  little  and  low  beginnings.  The 
Work  they  have  accomplished  is  Noble.  They  have  settled  the  Wor- 
ship of  GOD  in  a  place  where  the  Inhabitants  were  under  very  hard 
Circumstances,  by  reason  of  their  remoteness.  Their  Hands  are  few, 
and  weak.  If  you  shall  find  in  your  heart,  one  way  or  other  to  give 
them  a  Lift,  I  am  persuaded,  you  will  therein  be  a  Worker  with  GOD, 
and  I  hope,  neither  you,  nor  any  of  your  Descendents,  will  have  cause  to 

*  Coffin's  History  of  Newbury,  page  170.  t  Ibid.,  page  401. 


296  OL'LD   XEU'BURY 

Repent  of   it.      I  do  not  challeni^e  it   of   you:   Init    I    must   needs   say,  if 
vou  whollv  decline  it,  I  shall  fail  of  my  expectation. 

Living  upon  vour  Lands,  you  are  in  a  special  maiier  concernd  in  the 
Small  Treatise  inclosed,  which  please  to  accept  of,  from  Sir 

Vour  humble  Serv« 

S.  S.* 

The  parish  of  Byfield  was  incorporated  by  the  General 
Court  Oct.  28,  1 710;  and  a  few  weeks  later  Colonel,  after- 
ward Judge,  Hyfield  gave  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  parish 
a  bell  weighing  two  hundred  and  twenty-six  pounds.  A  por- 
trait of  the  venerable  judge,  who  died  in  1733,  now  hangs 
in  the  new  parsonage,  nearly  opposite  the  meeting-house.  It 
was  presented  to  the  parish  June  i,  i<S35,  by  George  D.  Lyde, 
Esc{.,  of  New  York,  a  descendant  of  Judge  Byfield. 

Oct.  21,  1706,  "the  Newbury  part  of  Byfield  was  set  off 
for  so  long  a  time  as  they  shall  maintain  an  orthodox  minister 
amongst  them  "  ;  and  in  1707  the  parish  lines  on  the  Rowley 
side  were  established.  Since  then  these  lines  have  been 
changed  several  times  to  accommodate  families  living  in  that 
vicinity.  By  the  incorporation  of  Georgetown,  in  1838,  the 
parish  is  now  composed  of  a  part  of  three  towns, —  Newbury, 
Rowley,  and  Georgetown. 

In  1746,  a  new  meeting-house,  larger  and  more  commodi- 
ous, was  built,  and  the  old  one  was  then  taken  down.  This 
second  house  was  destroyed  by  fire  March  i,  1833.  Three 
months  later  the  corner-stone  of  the  third  and  present  house 
was  laid,  and  the  building  completed  and  dedicated  Novem- 
ber 7th  of  that  year. 

The  burial-ground  was  probably  selected  and  made  ready 
for  use  as  soon  as  the  first  meeting-house  was  erected,  and 
before  the  parish  was  legally  organized.  The  first  person 
buried  within  that  ancient  enclosure  was  Mehetable  Moody, 
wife  of  William  Moody.  She  was  the  grand-daughter  of 
Henry  Sevvall,  Sr.,  who  died  at  Rowley  in  March,  1656-7. 
The  inscri]~)tion  on  her  grax'cstone  is  as  lollows:  — 

"  ScwaH's  Letter  Huok,  volunn;  i.  p.igi;  345. 


BYFIELD    PARISH  297 

Mehetable 
Dater  of  M'  Henry  &  Jane 
Sewall,  wife  of  M''  William  Moodey 
Promoted  settling  the  worship 
of  God  here,  and  then  went  to 
her  glorified  son  William, 
leaving  her  son  Samuel  &  four 
Daters  with  their  Father,  August  y*" 
8«h,  1702,  .'Etat  38.  Was  the  first 
interred    in    this    place. 

On  the  stone  that  marks  the  grave  of  Joshua  Woodman  is 
the  following  inscription  :  — 

Here  Lies  y^  Body  of  M' 
J  o  s  h  u  a  h  Woodman 
Who  Died  May  y^'  30 
1703,  Aged  67  Years 
First  Man  Child  Borne 

In     N  e  w  b  u  r  y 
&  Second   I  nturid   In 

This    Place. 

Rev.  Moses  Hale  was  the  first  pastor  of  Byfield  Parish. 
He  was  born  in  Newbury  July  10,  1678,  graduated  at  Har- 
vard in  1699,  and  preached  in  the  parish  from  its  organization 
in  1702,  but  was  not  ordained  until  Nov.  17,  1706.  He  re- 
tained  his   position   as   minister   until   his   death   in  January, 

1743- 

In   April,    1 744,    Rev.    Moses   Parsons  was  invited  to  take 

charge  of  the  parish.  He  was  the  youngest  son  of  Eben  and 
Lydia  Parsons,  and  was  born  in  Gloucester  June  20,  1716. 
He  graduated  at  Harvard  in  1736,  and  married  Susan  Davis, 
of  Gloucester,  fifth  in  descent  from  John  Robinson,  of  Ley- 
den,  Jan.  II,  1743.  Pie  was  ordained  pastor  of  the  chmxh 
at  Byfield  June  20,  1744-  I'^e  manuscript  of  the  sermon  he 
preached  on  Sunday,  July  i,  i744.  ten  days  after  his  ordina- 
tion, is  in  the  possession  of  the  writer  of  this  sketch.  The 
penmanship  is  plain  and  legible ;  and  the  letters,  though 
exceedingly  fine  and  minute,  are  carefully  and  accurately 
formed.      It  is  difficult,  however,  to  understand  how  a  manu- 


298  OULD    jXEWBUKY 

script  of  this  description  could  be  read  from  the  pulpit  with- 
out the  aid  of  a  powerful  magnifyini;'  sjjlass.  The  text  was 
taken  from  2  Corinthians,  second  chapter,  and  sixteenth 
verse  :  — 

To  the  one  we  are  the  savor  of  death  unto  death,  and  to  the  other 
the  savor  of  life  unto  life.      And  who  is  sutificient  for  these  things? 

The  preacher,  addressing  his  congregation,  said  :  — 

God,  by  his  I'rovidence  and,  I  trust,  by  his  Grace  also,  has  called  me 
to  the  work  of  the  ministry  among  you  :  a  laborious  and  ditificult  tho'  an 
honorable  and  glorious  work :  .  .  .  and  y'  we  may  see  something  of  the 
Greatness,  Difficulty  and  Importance  of  the  work  of  the  ministry  and 
thereby  be  stirred  up  earnestly  to  seek  unto  God  thro"  Ch'  for  the  assist- 
ance of  his  Grace  to  perform  the  Duties  of  our  several  stations  and  Re- 
lations agreeable  to  his  will  is  the  Design  of  my  Subject  at  this  time. 

He  then  proceeded  to  discuss  the  relations  and  duties  of 
minister  and  people,  and  closed  with  this  exhortation  :  — 

Let  me  entreat  you  to  do  all  y'  you  can  to  encourage  my  heart  and 
strengthen  my  hands  that  I  may  be  faithful  and  successful  in  the  work 
of  the  ministry  among  you. 

Lieutenant-Governor  William  Dummer  was  at  that  time 
a  strong  and  influential  friend  of  the  church,  and  during  the 
remainder  of  his  life  was  deeply  interested  in  its  welfare. 

Dummer  Academy,  established  in  1763,  the  first  school  of 
its  kind  in  the  j^rovince  of  Massachusetts,  owes  its  existence 
to  the  liberality  and  generosity  of  this  worth}'  and  distin- 
guished member  of  the  Hyfield  Parish. 

Toward  the  close  of  Rev.  l\Ir.  Parsons's  pastorate,  Deacon 
Benjamin  Colman,  a  thorough-going  abolitionist,  in  advance 
of  his  time,  brought  serious  charges  against  him  for  violating 
the  divine  law  and  holding  men  and  women  in  the  bondage 
of  slavery.  The  controversy  that  ensued  was  prolonged  for 
many  years,  and  created  intense  excitement  and  bitterness  in 
the  ])arish.  The  letters  of  Deacon  Colman  in  relation  to  the 
sid)ject  are  jirinted  in  full  in  Coffin's  ilistor)'  of  Newbury, 
])ages  340  to  350,  inclusi\e. 


BY  FIELD    PARISH  299 

Upon  a  salary  not  exceeding"  £,'^0  annually,  payable  partly 
in  silver  and  partly  in  farm  produce,  Rev.  Moses  Parsons 
brought  up  a  family  of  five  sons  and  two  daughters.  With 
this  small  sum  he  educated  three  of  his  sons  at  Harvard  Col- 
lege, and  maintained  a  comfortable  and  hospitable  home  until 
his  death,  Dec.  14,  1783,  at  the  age  of  sixty-seven.* 

Two  of  his  sons,  Ebenezer  Parsons  and  Theophilus  Par- 
sons, were  in  later  years  prominent  and  influential  citizens 
of  old  Newbury.  The  former  built  and  occupied  a  spacious 
house  at  Fatherland  Farm  that  is  still  standing ;  and  the 
latter  erected  a  fine  and  stately  mansion  on  the  northwest 
corner  of  Green  and  Washington  Streets,  Newburyport,  that 
is  now  held  by  Archbishop  Williams,  in  trust,  for  the  use 
and  benefit  of  the  Roman  Catholic  church  in  this  vicinity. 

The  old  parsonage  at  Byfield,  where  Rev.  Moses  Parsons 
lived  for  nearly  forty  years  and  where  all  his  children  were 
born,  was  occupied  by  his  successors  in  the  ministry  until 
June  21,  1847,  when  it  was  leased  for  nine  hundred  and 
ninety-nine  years  to  Rev.  Henry  Durant,  who  was  at  that  date 
pastor  of  the  church,  and  afterward,  until  1853,  principal  of 
Dummer  Academy  (Essex  Deeds,  book  411,  page  58). 

In  1849,  K.ev.  Henry  Durant  gave  a  mortgage  of  this  prop- 
erty to  D.  S.  Caldwell,  one  of  the  parish  committee,  which  is 
recorded  in  the  P2ssex  Registry  of  Deeds,  book  411,  page 
59,  and  in  December,  1851,  a  second  mortgage  to  John  F. 
Twombly,  which  was  assigned  to  D.  S.  Caldwell  Oct.  4, 
1852,  and  possession  taken  under  the  first  mortgage  June  9, 
1852   (book  462,  page  298,  and  book  476,  page  5). 

A  deed  or  lease  of  this  property  from  D.  S.  Caldwell  to 
Isaac  W.  Wheelwright  was  probably  signed  and  executed 
about  this  date,  but  no  evidence  of  this  fact  can  be  found  on 
the  records  in  Salem.  Mr.  Wheelwright  occupied  the  house 
for  more  than  forty  years,  and  during  that  time  made  many 
substantial  changes  in  its  exterior.  The  half-tone  print  that 
accompanies  this  sketch  represents  the  house  as  it  was  before 
these  alterations  were  made. 

*  In  "  A  Brief  History  of  Byfield,"  by  INfr.  Joseph  N.  Dummer,  published  in  iSSS,  the  reader 
will  find  an  interesting  sketch  of  Rev.  Moses  Parsons  and  others  who  succeeded  him  in  the  min- 
istry at  Byfield. 


300  OUl.n    XE IV BURY 

Isaac  W.  \\'hccl\vrii;ht  died  July  14,  1895.  In  his  will 
dated  Jan.  19,  1878,  and  jjroved  Sept.  3,  1895,  he  gave  hi.s 
farm  in  Newbury  with  tw'o  dwelling-houses  and  other  build- 
ings thereon  t(^  his  wife,  Adeline,  for  her  life,  and  at  her 
decease  to  his  two  sons,  William  D.  and  Joseph  IJ.  Wheel- 
wright. 

Mrs.  Wheelwright  died  Jan.  20,  1896.  On  the  twenty- 
first  day  of  January,  1896,  William  D.  Wheelwright,  of  New 
York  City,  conve}'ed  to  his  sister,  Mary  D.  Sargent,  of  Hryn 
Mawr,  Pa.,  all  his  interest  in  the  estate  of  his  father,  Isaac  W. 
Wheelwright  (Ix)ok  1472,  leaf  429). 

March  10,  1896,  Mary  D.  Sargent,  of  Hryn  Mawr,  Pa., 
sold  to  Sarah  V.  Dummer,  wife  of  Joseph  N.  Dummer,  of 
Rowley,  Mass.,  all  her  right  and  title  to  the  property  con- 
veyed above  (book  1472,  leaf  431). 

At  the  present  time  Mr.  Joseph  I).  Wlieelwright  and  his 
sister,  Mrs.  Sarah  V.  Dummer,  are  sole  owners  of  the  old 
parsonage  house  and  the  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same 
in  Byfield  Parish. 


HOMESTEAD   OF   BENJAMIN    PEARSON. 


The  stately  elm-tree  that  stands  in  front  of  the  residence 
of  Mr.  Benjamin  Pearson  at  By  field  is  one  of  the  notable 
sights  of  that  neighborhood.  Its  great  size  and  graceful 
shape  are  prominent  features  in  the  landscape.  Viewed  from 
a  distance,  it  rivets  the  attention  and  invites  a  closer  in- 
spection. Standing  beneath  its  outstretched  branches,  the 
beholder  cannot  fail  to  be  impressed  with  its  massive  pro- 
portions and  symmetrical  outlines. 

The  old  house,  shaded  and  sheltered  by  the  foliage  of  this 
majestic  tree,  was  probably  built  by  Benjamin  Pearson  nearly 
two  centuries  ago.  The  land  on  which  the  house  and  tree 
stand  was  originally  granted  to  Peter  Cheney. 

A  committee  appointed  Jan.  5,  1687,  by  the  town  of  New- 
bury "  to  treat  with  Peter  Cheney  about  setting  up  a  corne 
mill  and  a  fulling  mill,"  having  attended  to  that  duty,  the 
town  granted,  Feb.  15,  1687,  to  the  said  Peter  Cheney  "fifty 
acres  of  land  on  the  Falls  river  on  condition  that  he  build  a 
corn  or  grist  mill  within  two  years  and  a  fulling  mill  within 
three  years,  at  the  upper  falls."  Dec.  25,  1689,  he  was 
allowed  one  year  longer  in  which  to  finish  his  fulling  mill. 

Jan.  10,  1694-5,  Peter  Cheney,  Sr.,  sold  to  Peter  Cheney, 
Jr.,  "one  half  the  saw  mill  yard  on  the  south  side  of  the 
F'alls  river,  which  is  the  one  half  on  which  said  saw  mill  is 
lately  built  and  stands  near  my  corn  mill "  (Essex  Deeds, 
book  18,  leaf  22). 

Dec.  30,  1696,  Peter  Cheney  sold  to  Francis  Wainwright 
one-half  the  saw-mill  and  yard  with  stream  of  water,  etc., 
substantially  as  above  (book  11,  leaf  238). 

April  2,  1705,  Francis  Wainwright  sold  to  Benjamin  Pear- 
son the  property  described  in  the  last-mentioned  conveyance 
(book  45,  leaf  216). 


HOMESTEAD    OF  BENJAMIN  PEARSON  303 

Aug.  10,  1709,  I^ldad  Cheney  and  Martha  Worcester,  of 
Bradford,  Ichabod  Cheney,  Huldah  Worcester,  Jemima,  wife 
of  Richard  Pettingall,  Hannah,  wife  of  Lionell  Chute,  and 
Lydia,  wife  of  Jeremiah  Poor,  of  Rowley,  all  children  of 
Peter  Cheney,  late  of  Newbury,  deceased,  for  ^46  \os.,  sold 
to  Benjamin  Pearson,  of  Newbury,  carpenter,  twenty-four 
acres  of  land  in  Newbury  "  on  ye  southerly  side  of  the  falls 
River,  Bounded  easterly  by  a  Tract  of  Land  which  was 
formerly  given  by  ye  s*'  Peter  Cheney,  Deceas'd,  as  afores'd 
to  his  son  Peter  Cheney,  brother  to  y""  said  P^ldad  Cheney, 
Martha  Worcester,  &c.,  southerly  and  westerly  by  y"  comon 
land  of  Newbury,  northerly  by  ye  saw  mill  yard  and  falls 
River"  (book  25,  leaf  ^G). 

Soon  after  this  date,  probably,  Benjamin  Pearson  built  the 
house  still  standing  near  the  site  of  the  old  fulling  mill.  In 
his  will  dated  March  10,  1729-30,  and  proved  June  28,  1731, 
he  gave  to  his  son  Benjamin  Pearson  "all  the  lands  I 
bought  of  Major  Francis  Wainwright  and  ye  Cheneys  and 
also  my  dwelling  house  and  my  mills,  goods,  stock,  working 
tools  and  all  appurtenances  belonging  to  ye  clothier's  trade 
as  it  is  situate  on  the  south  side  of  ye  Falls  river  and 
bounded  as  by  my  deed  which  I  had  of  Major  Francis  Wain- 
wright, and  also  the  right  of  ye  stream  of  water  for  said 
mills." 

The  business  established  by  Peter  Cheney  was  continued 
by  the  descendants  of  Benjamin  Pearson  down  to  within  a 
comparatively  recent  date ;  and  Benjamin  Pearson,  a  lineal 
descendant  of  Benjamin  Pearson,  Sr.,  of  the  sixth  generation, 
still  owns  and  occupies  the  old  house. 

The  age  and  history  of  the  veteran  elm  that  stands  like  a 
sentinel  near  the  entrance  to  this  estate  is  somewhat  vague 
and  obscure.  Early  deeds  and  conveyances  give  no  informa- 
tion on  the  subject.  On  page  410  of  Coffin's  History  of 
Newbury,  published  fifty  years  ago,  the  author  refers  to  this 
tree  ;  but  his  language  seems  to  imply  that  it  was  then  lack- 
ing in  beauty  and  gracefulness.  The  growth  and  develop- 
ment of  recent  years  have,  however,  effected  a  wonderful 
change  in  its  appearance  ;  and  it  is  now  the  finest  specimen 
of  the  American  elm  to  be  found  in  this  vicinity. 


304  OUI.D    X/AllWRY 

Mcasurcnients  taken  in  1896  <;ive  a  ^-irth  of  nineteen  feet 
two  inches  around  the  trunk,  five  feet  from  the  ground,  and 
a  sj^read  of  one  hunched  and  seven  feet  from  outermost 
bough  to  outermost  bough.  This  girth  would  be  increased 
nearly  two  feet  if  taken  eighteen  inches  higher  or  lower  than 
the  place  selected.  The  estimated  height  of  the  tree  to  the 
topmost  branch  is  ninety  feet. 


THE   LONGFELLOW   HOUSE, 

Byfield  Parish. 


William  Longfellow,  the  first  of  that  name  who  came  to 
America,  was  born  in  Horsforth,  near  Leeds,  in  York  County, 
England,  and  baptized  at  Guiseley  Oct.  20,  1650.  He  was 
a  man  of  ability  and  education,  but  rather  improvident  in  his 
manner  of  life,  preferring"  fun  and  frolic  to  work  and  study. 
He  married,  Nov.  10,  1676,  Anne  Sewall,  sister  of  Judge 
Samuel  Sewall  and  daughter  of  Henry  and  Jane  (Dummer) 
Sewall. 

l^vo  years  later  he  was  living  at  Newbury  Falls,  as  appears 
from  the  following  clause  in  Henry  Sewall's  will,  dated  Aug. 
17,  1678:  — 

I  give  &  bequeath  to  my  Sonne  in  Law  William  Longfellow  &  my 
daughter  Anne  his  wife,  during  their  naturall  life,  a  tract  of  Land  with 
the  house  on  it  comonly  Knowne  by  the  name  of  the  high  field,  with  a 
parcell  of  meadow  adjoyning  thereunto  containing  about  seven  or  eight 
acres,  being  on  the  east  side  of  the  ffalls  river,  bounded  on  the  south 
west  side  with  a  little  brooke  &  the  great  river,  &  the  northeast  side 
with  a  small  creeke  &  stony  brooke  running  into  it.  Allso  an  equal 
part  or  moyty  of  my  great  meadow  formerly  possessed  by  Launcelott 
Granger;  And  after  their  decease  to  the  heires  of  the  sajd  Anne  of  her 
body  lawfully  begotten  or  to  be  begotten,  &  for  want  of  sajd  issue  to  my 
Sonne  Samuel  Sewall  to  enjoy  to  him  and  his  heires  for  ever. 

This  will  was  not  proved  until  May  24,  1 700,  ten  years 
after  the  death  of  William  Longfellow.  Meanwhile  the 
house  and  land  had  been  conveyed  by  deed  from  Henry 
Sewall  to  his  daughter  Anne  Longfellow. 

In  1680,  Samuel  Sewall,  in  a  letter  to  his  brother,  Stephen 
Sewall,  at  Bishop  Stoke  in  Hampshire,  England,  wrote  as 
follows  :  — 


THE    LONGFELLOW  HOUSE  Z°l 

Bro  LonsfelloWs  Father.  Will"'  Longfellow,  lives  at  Horsforth  near 
Leeds  in  Yorkshire.  Tell  him  Bro.  has  a  son  W">,  a  fine  likely  ch,ld,  a 
very  c^ood  piece  of  land  &  greatly  wants  a  little  stock  to  manage  ,t,  and 
yt  Father  hath  paid  for  him  upwards  of  an  hundred  pounds  to  get  h.m 
out  of  Debt  (A:  E.  Historical  ami  Genealogical  Register,  volume  24, 
page  123). 

In  a  letter  to  his  father,  Henry  Sevvall,  at  Newbury,  dated 
Sept.  10,  1686,  he  wrote:  — 

As  to  Brother  Longfellow's  business,  I  have  writt  you  my  sence 
before  •  viz  that  would  first  understand  more  certainly  the  state  of  h,s 
affair,  'which  I  have  taken  care  for  by  Mr.  Foxcroft.  However.  ,f 
Brother  be  persuaded  that  'tis  his  best  way  to  go  over  this  Fall,  as  is 
hinted  in  his  Letter,  I  shall  not  contradict :  because  he  best  knows  his 
own  Concerns.  Only  1  cahot  give  him  that  Assistance  he  mention.s_of 
/->o  or  /30  Yet  if' he  be  resolved  to  goe.  and  have  not  other  accomo- 
dation and  sister  desire  it  too.  I  should  not  be  against  undertaking  for 
his  passa-e  And  am  willing  to  give  up  the  Mortgage  for  the  Principal, 
without  any  demand  of  Interest;  which,  pray.  Sir,  remembering  my 
Love  to  him  and  sister,  please  to  signify.* 

On  page  50  of   SeNvall's  Letter  Book  is  the  folloxving  letter 

to  "  Brother  Longfellow  "  :  — 

Boston.  N.  E.,  Augt.  8,  1687. 

Iovi>.r  Brot/n-r.-\ our.  of  the    12-  of  March,  datted   at    Rumsey, 
came  safe  to  hand,  am  glad  to  hear  of  your  good  passage  and  arrival. 
Thankful  to  friends  for  their   Kindnes  shewed  you.      I  had  a  son  born 
the  30"^  of  January,  a  desireable  healthy  Child  to  our  thinking,  but  he 
fell  ill  and  dyed  the  26^^  of  July.     Brother  Stephen  hath  a  little  Marga- 
reTt      Our  friends  att   Newberry  are  well  as  far  as  I  know.      My  sister 
was  much  refreshed  to  hear  of  your  Welfare  :   her  Letter  to  you  sent  me 
for  Conveyance.  I  have  enclosed   In  mine.      As  to  the  younger  children 
of  Wallingford,  I  understand  they  are  averse  to  whatt  you  writt  abou  t, 
and  those  nott  of  Age  twill  be  hard  for  them  being  So  Remote  to  do 
anything  Legally;   and  except  they  see  you  make  some  succesfuU  prog- 
ress  in    what  you   have   begun.    I    doubt   will   be   backward       I  should 
think  your  besi  way  will  be  to  gett  your  own  mony  in  Yorkshire  (as  you 
write  you  are  agoing  thether),  and  then  lay  it  outt  in  whatt  may  be  ad- 
vantagious  to   New   England,  and  not  hazzard  the  throwing  away  your 
Patrimony  in  Tedious   Doubtful   Law   Suitts.      I   would    not   have   you 
venture  upon  anything   in   that   kind  but  what  may  be  very  plain  and 

*Sewairs  Letter  Book,  volume  i,  page  3^^- 


3o8  OULD   NEWBURY 

fecible.  lest  accordiniLi;  to  the  Fable  in  /Esop  catching  att  a  shadow  yon 
lose  the  Body.  Give  my  dne  remembrance  to  my  relations.  Praying 
God  to  succeed  you  in  your  concerns  and  to  bless  your  succes.  I  take 
leave  who  am  your  Loving  Brother. 

On  page  6i  of  the  same  volume,  under  date  of  Aug.  25, 
1687,  Judge  Sewall  acknowledges  the  receipt  of  a  letter  from 
"brother  Longfellow,"  dated  London,  June  11,  and  adds  inci- 
dentally, "  His  father  aliv^e  and  well."  The  patrimony,  there- 
fore, to  which  reference  is  made,  was  probably  due  from  the 
estate  of  a  brother  who  died  in  England  about  that  time. 

After  the  retiu'n  of  William  Longfellow  to  Newbury  he 
enlisted  in  the  expedition  to  Ouebec,  under  Sir  William 
Phips,  and  was  drowned  at  Cape  Breton  in  October,  1690. 
Judge  Sewall  in  his  diar}'  says:  — 

'Twas  Tuesday,  the  18"'  of  November,  that  I  heard  of  the  death  of 
Capt.  Stephen  Greenleaf,  Lieut.  James  Smith  and  Ensign  W'"  Long- 
fellow. Serj'  Increase  Pilsbury,  who  with  Will  Mitchell,  Jabez  Musgro 
and  four  more  were  drown"d  at  Cape  Britoon  on  Friday  night  the  last 
of  October. 

William  LongfelK)w  and  Anne  (Sewall)  Longfellow  had  six- 
children  :  — 

William,  born  Nov.  25,  1679. 
Stephen,  born  Jan.  10,  1681. 
Anne,  born  Oct.  3,  [683. 
Stephen,  born  Sept.  22.  1685. 
Elizabeth,  born  Julv  3,  1688. 
Natlian.  born  Feb.  5.  16(^0. 

April  13,  1692,  Henr)'  .Sewall,  in  consideration  of  the  mar- 
riage shortl)-  to  be  consiuiimated  between  Henr)-  Short  and 
Anne  (Sewall)  Longfellow,  widow,  conx'eyed  to  them  during 
their  lives,  and  after  their  decease  to  their  children,  "  the 
farm  lately  in  the  occupation  of  William  Longfellow,  called 
the  High  Field,  together  with  the  dwelling-house,  i)Uthouses, 
&c."  (Ivsse.x  Deeds,  book  16,  page  21). 

May  II,  1692,  Henry  Short  married  Anne  (Sewall)  Long- 
fellow,   and    lived    on    the    farm   tlescribed    above.      He   had. 


THE   LONGFELLOW  LIOUSE  3^9 

by    this    marriage,    six    children.      Henry    Short     died     Oct. 
o-    1706       His  widow  died  Dec.  18,  1706. 
"   The  title  to  this  property  was,  by  virtue  of  the  deed  of  con- 
veyance from   Henry  Sewall,  vested  in  the  surviving  children 
of  Anne  (Sewall)  Longfellow-Short. 

Stephen  Longfelh.w  (the  second  of  that  name),  born  Sept. 
-,.  1685  was  a  locksmith  and  blacksmith  by  trade.  Jan.  3, 
1710-11  he  bought  of  his  sister  Elizabeth  all  her  right  and 
interest  ''in  land  given  to  said  Anne  by  her  father,  Henry 
Sewall,  in  particular  the  farm  in  Newbury  known  as  ye  high 
field"    (Essex  Deeds,  book  23,  page  97). 

Dec  17.  1 712,  he  bought  of  his  brother  Nathan  all  his 
ri.xht  and  interest  in  the  same  property  (book  37,  page  261). 
^He  married,  March  25,  171 3,  Abigail,  daughter  of  Rev. 
Edward  Thompson,  of  Marshfield,  Mass.  About  this  time 
he  built  an  addition  to  the  house,  with  a  lean-to  roof.  The 
addition  was  removed  early  in  this  century,  and  does  not 
appear  in   the  half-tone  print    that  illustrates  this  sketch. 

Jan  7  1714-15.  he  bought  of  John  luuery  and  wife 
Mehitable,  daughter  of  Anne  Longfellow,  all  her  right  and 
interest  in  the  house  and  land  previously  described  (book  42, 
pao-e  66)  ;  and  Jan.  6,  1725-6,  he  bought  of  his  half-brother 
Samuel  Short  "all  that  right  and  interest  in  the  high  field 
farm  at  Newbury  Ealls  given  me  by  deed  and  will  of  my 
o-randfather,  Henry  Sewall  "  (book  47-  P^ge  119)- 
^  In  the  Letter  Book  of  Samuel  Sewall  (volume  2,  page  172) 
there  is  an  interesting  letter  relating  to  an  encumbrance  on 
this  property,  which  reads  as  follows  :  — 

To  ^Ir.  Stephen  Longfellow  Septic  3,  1724. 

Lovin^^  Cousin^-  1  am  grieVd  to  hear  that  you  are  still  contending 
in  the  Law  with  vour  Brother  and  Sister  Adams  about  my  honoured 
Father's  Mortgage  of  Half  the  High-Field,  which  must  be  costly,  even 
to  the  Overcomer;  Besides  the  Loss  of  Brotherly-kindness,  which  ,s 
invaluable.  Therefore  I  earnestly  advise  and  intreat  you  to  leave  off 
this  Contention  before  it  be  any  further  medled  w>th ;  and  to  conclude 
all  with  a  just  and  Kind  Agreement.  Praying  GOD  to  do  you  and 
yours  Good,  I  am  your  loving  Unkle  ^^^^^^^^  ^^^^^^^^ 


3IO  OULD   XEIVBURY 

In  the  same  volume  and  on  the  same  page  is  the  following 
letter,  on  the  same  subject :  — 

Septr  3.  1 724. 

Loving  Cousins, —  I  am  grieved  to  hear  that  you  are  still  contending 
in  the  Law  with  your  brother  Stephen  Longfellow  about  mv  honoured 
Father's  Mortgage  of  Half  the  High-Field,  which  must  be  Costly,  even 
to  the  overcomer;  Besides  the  Loss  of  Brotherly-kindness,  which  is  in- 
valuable. I  am  confident  that  I  drew  the  Mortgage,  and  that  no  more 
was  intended  to  be  Granted  thereby,  than  Half  the  High-Field  strictly 
taken,  as  it  was  then  fenced  in :  and  to  take  in  a  Surplusage  of  Land 
lying  between  the  Northwesterly  end  of  the  High-F'ield  and  the  Head- 
Line  of  my  Father's  Farm,  running  from  Rattle-Snake  Rock  to  Philp's 
Brook.  And  therefore  I  earnestly  advise  and  intreat  you  to  leave  off 
this  Contention  before  it  be  any  further  medled  with ;  and  to  conclude 
all  with  a  just  and  Kind  Agreement.  The  nearness  of  Relation  pre- 
cludes me  from  being  a  Judge  in  this  Controversy.  But,  if  I  should 
live,  and  be  called  to  it.  I  must  needs  give  this  evidence  in  the  case. 
Praying  GOD  to  do  Good  to  you  both,  and  to  the  numerous  Offspring 
He  has  Bless'd  you  with,  I  remain  vour  loving  L^nkle 

Samuel  Sew.\ll. 

To    .Mr.    Abraham   .\dams   &    Mrs.    Anne  Adams  at  Newbury  (sent  by 
Brother  Moodey) 

The  advice  offered  b)'  Judge  Sewall  was  apparent]}'  un- 
heeded, and  the  case  was  brought  to  trial  in  the  month  of 
May  following.  In  his  diary,  under  date  of  May  14,  1725, 
he  says : — 

Mr.  Rogers  pray'd  at  the  opening  of  the  Court.  Judgement  against 
cous.  Adams.  Cousin  Longfellow  has  his  judgment  confirm'd  against 
his  Bro''  and  sister  Adams.  With  leave  of  the  Court.  I  declar'd  how  I 
understood  the  Word  High  Field,  who  made  the  mortgage. 

Stephen  Longfellow  died  at  Newbury  Falls  (Hyfield  Parish) 
Nov.  17,  1764.  His  .son  Stephen,  born  Feb.  7,  1723,  grad- 
uated at  Harvard  College  in  1742,  removed  to  I-^ilmouth 
(now  Portland),  Me.,  in  1745,  and  there  married,  Oct.  19, 
1749,  Tabitha,  daughter  of  Samuel  Bragdon,  of  York,  Me. 
He  died  at  Gorham,  Me.,  May  i,  1790. 

.Stephen,  the  eldest  son  of  Stephen  and  Tabitha  (Bragdon) 
Longfellow,   was   born   Aug.  3.   1750.      He   married    Patience 


THE   LONGFELLOW  HOUSE  311 

Young,  of  York,  Me.,  Dec.  13,  1773,  and  died  May  28,  1824, 
leaving  several  children. 

The  eldest  son  of  Stephen  and  Patience  (Young)  Long- 
fellow, Stephen  Longfellow,  LL.D.,  was  born  March  23, 
1776,  graduated  at  Harvard  College  in  1798,  and  married 
Zilpha,  eldest  daughter  of  General  Peleg  Wadsworth,  Jan.  i, 
1804. 

Henry  Wadsworth  Longfellow,  the  poet,  second  son  of 
Stephen  and  Zilpha  Wadsworth  Longfellow,  was  born  in 
Portland,  Me.,  P'eb.  27,  1807.  He  died  in  Cambridge 
March  24,   1882. 

Stephen  Longfellow,  son  of  William  Longfellow  and  Anne 
(Sewall),  born  Sept.  22,  1685,  owned  and  occupied  the  house 
and  farm  at  Newbur)-  Falls  until  his  death,  Nov.  17,  1764. 
In  his  will,  dated  Oct.  13,  1760,  and  proved  Nov.  26,  1764, 
he  gave  to  his  wife  Abigail  one-half  of  the  homestead  during 
her  life,  and  to  his  sons  Edward  and  Samuel,  after  the  pay- 
ment of  certain  bequests,  all  the  rest  and  residue  of  his  estate 
excepting  land  adjoining  the  new  plantation  in  Contoocook, 
N.  H.  Abigail,  wife  of  Lieutenant  Stephen  Longfellow,  died 
Sept.  10,  1778,  aged  eighty-five. 

Dec.  II,  1788,  Edward  Longfellow  gave  to  his  brother 
Samuel  Longfellow  a  quitclaim  deed  of  twenty  rods  of  land 
"with  the  house  thereon"  (book  152,  page  95).  On  the  land 
remaining  in  his  possession  Edward  Longfellow  built  a  new 
house  that  is  still  standing  near  the  site  of  the  old  homestead. 

Samuel  Longfellow,  born  March  4,  1725,  married  Rebekah 
Chase  about  the  year  1769.  She  died  Feb.  25,  1788,  in  the 
forty-ninth  }'ear  of  her  age.  P"or  his  second  wife,  he  married 
Martha  Chaplin.  He  occupied  the  old  homestead  until  his 
death,  Aug.  4,  1800.  His  will,  dated  May  30,  1800,  and 
proved  Sept.  i,  1800,  gave  all  the  rest  and  residue  of  his 
estate  to  his  son  Nathan  after  the  payment  of  certain  small 
legacies. 

Nathan  Longfellow,  born  Dec.  26,  1773,  married  xA.nna 
Downer  in  the  year   1799.      He  died  Oct.  26,  1840.      In  his 


312  OULP   XEWnrRY 

will,  dated  Dec.  6,  1837,  and  pioxcd  in  December,  1840,  he 
gave  to  his  son  Josej")!!  the  old  house  with  the  land  under 
and  adjoining  the  same. 

Joseph  Longiellow,  born  Jul)'  11,  1810,  married  Lucretia 
Fairbanks,  of  Canton,  Mass.,  May  9,  1841.  They  have  two 
sons  now  lixing  :  — 

Horace  F..  born  Nov.  26.  i  S46. 
Charles  A.,  born  April  13,  [1X56. 

The  house  built  about  1790  b}'  lulwaixl  Longfellow,  with 
the  land  connected  therewith,  was  purchased  of  the  heirs 
of  the  late  lulward  Longfellow,  and  now  forms  a  part  of 
the  estate  of  Joseph  Longfellow,  who  still  resides  there. 

The  old  house  once  occupied  by  William  and  Anne  (Sewall) 
Longfellow  was  taken  down  ten  or  fifteen  years  ago.  The 
half  tone  \)x'\\-\X.  on  page  306  gixes  a  \'iew  of  the  house  as  it 
was  in  i  880. 


DUMMER   ACADEMY. 


Richard  Dummcr,  the  first  of  that  name  who  came  to 
America,  was  born  in  the  parish  of  Bishop  Stoke,  near  South- 
ampton, in  England  ;  and,  after  his  arrival  in  the  colony  of 
Massachusetts  Bay  in  1632,  he  resided  for  about  two  years 
in  Roxbury,  when  he  removed  to  Boston. 

He  was  interested  with  Richard  Saltonstall,  Henry  Sewall, 
and  others  in  the  importation  of  cattle  ;  and  in  May,  1635,  at 
the  same  session  and  on  the  same  day  that  Newbury  was  by 
the  General  Court  "  allowed  to  be  a  plantation,"  a  commit- 
tee was  appointed  "  to  set  out  a  farm  for  M""  Dummer  about 
the  Falls  of  Newbury." 

Feb.  II,  1635-6,  the  town  leased  to  Richard  Dummer,  for 
two  years,  a  lot  of  land  on  Newbury  Neck.  About  the  same 
time,  probably,  although  there  is  no  date  affixed  to  the  record 
in  the  Proprietors'  Book,  the  town  granted 

To  M''  Richard  Dumer  an  house  lot  of  four  acres,  be  it  more  or  less, 
two  acres  whereof  is  bounded  by  JVP  Easton  on  the  south,  by  Henry 
Short  on  the  north,  by  the  Green  on  the  east,  &  by  Mr.  Noyes  on  the 
west.  The  other  two  acres  are  bounded  by  the  river  on  the  south,  by 
High  street  on  the  north,  by  Mr.  Easton  on  the  east,  &  Henry  Short  on 
the  west. 

The  grant  to  Nicholas  Easton,  recorded  in  the  same  book, 
confirms  the  bounds  and  limits  of  the  four-acre  lot  described 
above.      It  reads  as  follows  :  — 

To  Nicholas  Easton  an  house  lot  of  four  acres,  be  it  more  or  less, 
two  acres  whereof  is  bounded  by  Mr.  Noyes  on  the  south,  and  by  Mr. 
Dumer  on  the  North,  the  Green  on  the  east,  &  Mr.  Noyes  on  the  west. 
The  other  two  acres  are  bounded  by  the  river  on  the  south,  by  High 
Street  on  the  north,  Mr.  Dumer  on  the  west,  &  Mr.  Noyes  on  the  east. 


DUMMER   ACADEMY  315 

These  grants  can  be  easily  identified  by  reference  to  the 
plan  on  page  14  drawn  by  Daniel  Dole,  whereon  the  lots  laid 
out  to  the  first  settlers  at  the  Lower  Green  are  properly 
marked  and  designated. 

Richard  Dlmimer  was  liberal  in  his  theological  views, 
and  was  disarmed  —  "deprived  of  swords,  guns,  pistols,  shot, 
and  match" — by  the  General  Court  Nov.  20,  1637,  because 
of  his  avowed  sympathy  with  Mrs.  Anne  Hutchinson  and 
Rev.  John  Wheelwright. 

On  the  eighteenth  day  of  the  eleventh  month,  1637,  the 
town  ordered 

That  whereas  the  full  terme  of  two  years  is  now  expired  for  which 
terme  part  of  the  necke  of  ground  on  the  south  side  of  the  river  was  the 
18"'  of  January,  1635,  last  lett  out  to  Mr.  Dummer  that  now  the  towne 
doth  againe  take  it  into  their  own  hands  &  intend  to  dispose  of  it  at 
their  pleasure,  &  that  Mr.  Dummer  shall  with  all  convenient  spead  be 
payd  all  necessary  charges  attending  to  former  agreement. 

A  few  months  later  Richard  Dummer  bought  of  lliomas 
Hale  a  house  and  land  on  Merrimack  ridge,  described  as 
follows  :  — 

October  6,  163.S,  the  Town  confirms  the  sale  from  Thomas  Hale  to 
Richard  Dumer  of  house  &  land  on  Merrimack  Ridge  on  both  sides. 
Said  Dumer  is  granted  to  have  all  the  land  betwi.xt  his  pailes  &  Mr. 
Sewall's  fence  ranging  equally  with  the  pales  allready  sett  up,  leaving  a 
watering  place  for  the  cattell  to  drink  at  the  brooke. 

In  1640,  he  gave  p{^ioo  toward  the  fund  subscribed  by  a 
few  citizens  of  Boston  and  elsewhere  to  make  up  the  loss  that 
Governor  Winthrop  had  suffered  through  the  unfaithfulness 
of  a  bailiff.  For  this  act  of  liberality  and  generosity  he  was 
highly  commended,  and  received  great  praise  from  personal 
as  well  as  political  friends  and  opponents. 

How  long  he  retained  this  house  and  land  at  Parker  River 
is  somewhat  uncertain.  When  the  new  town  was  laid  out  in 
1646,  he  probably  removed  to  his  farm  at  Newbury  Falls. 

Nov.  17,  1673,  in  consideration  of  the  marriage  of  his  son 
Richard  to  Elizabeth,  eldest  daughter  of  Captain  John  Apple- 


3l6  OULD   NEWBURY 

ton,  of  Ipswich,  he  conveyed  to  his  said  son  all  that  portion 
of  the  farm,  includini;-  mansion  house,  etc.,  bounded  north 
and  northeast  and  northwesterly  by  the  Newbury  or  I^^alls 
River,  also  one-third  of  unenclosed  land  —  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  acres  in  all  —  on  the  south  and  southwest  side 
of  the  farm  (Ipswich  Deeds,  book  3,  pa^je  290).  This 
estate  was  purchased  in  1801  of  descendants  of  Richard 
Dummer  by  Mr.  Eben  Parsons,  brother  of  Theophilus  Par- 
sons, and  is  now  known  as  the  P\atherland  Farm. 

April  18,  1679,  Richard  Dummer,  Sr.,  conveyed  to  Jere- 
miah Dummer,  of  Boston,  ninety-five  acres  of  upland  and 
thirteen  acres  of  meadow  in  Newbury  and  Rowley  "  lately 
laid  out,  as  appears  in  the  Newbury  town  book."  Frances, 
wife  of  Richard  Dummer,  released  dower  (Ipswich  Deeds, 
book  4,  page  291). 

Richard  Dummer,  Sr.,  died  Dec.  14,  1679,  at  the  age  of 
eighty-eight.  His  will,  dated  April  3,  1679,  and  proved  April 
I,  1680,  is  very  brief.      One  clause  reads  as  follows  :  — 

Having  disposed  of  my  lands  and  the  greatest  part  of  my  estate,  I 
give  and  bequeath  to  my  danghter-in-law,  Elizabeth  Paine,  as  ffeoffer  in 
trust  for  the  benefit  of  my  wife  Frances,  one  half  my  now  dwelling  house 
during  the  said  Frances  life  and  my  share  of  the  Saw  Mill  during  her 
life. 

By  his  first  wife,  Mary,  he  had  one  son,  Shubael,  born  P"eb. 
17,  1636.  By  his  second  wife,  P" ranees,  widow  of  Rev.  Jona- 
than Burr,  he  had  three  sons,  Jeremiah,  Richard,  and  Will- 
iam, and  one  daughter,  Hannah.  Shubael  graduated  at  Har- 
vard in  1656,  and  was  afterward  settled  as  a  minister  at 
York,  Me.  He  was  killed  by  the  Indians  near  his  own  house 
in  1692.  William  died  before  arri\ing  at  bis  majority. 
Richard  owned  and  managed  the  farm  at  the  brills ;  and 
Jeremiah,  born  Sept.  14,  1643,  was  api:)renticed  to  John 
Hull,  sih'ersmith,  in  Boston,  when  t|uite  )-()ung,  and  was 
afterward  judge  of  the  court  of  common  ])leas  in  Suffolk 
county  from  1702  to  171  5. 

In  the  division  of  William  Dummer's  estate,  Nov.  23,  1680, 
between    his    three  brothers,  Shubael,  Jeremiah,  and  Richartl, 


DUMMER   ACADEMY  317 

the  farm,  in  Newbury,  occupied  by  Benjamin  Goodrich,  was 
assigned  to  Shubael  and  Jeremiah,  and  the  farm  occupied  by 
Duncan  Stewart  was  assigned  to  Richard  (Ipswich  Deeds, 
book  4,  page  370). 

At  a  later  date  Jeremiah  undoubtedly  purchased  additional 
land  in  Newbury,  but  the  deeds  of  conveyance  have  not  been 
discovered.  He  married  Anna  Atwater,  daughter  of  Joshua 
At  water,  Sr.,  of  Boston. 

Nov.  18,  1 71 2,  Jeremiah  Dummer,  of  Boston,  and  his  wife 
Anna,  conveyed  to  William  Dummer,  of  Boston,  merchant, 
son  of  the  above  said  Jeremiah  and  Anna,  "  houses,  lands, 
and  farm,  &c.,  in  Newbury,  more  especially  the  farm,  houses, 
&c.,  near  unto  Rowley  Mill  upon  Easton's  River,  now  in  the 
occupation  of  Philip  Woodbridge  and  Richard  Walker, 
farmers,  being  four  hundred  acres,  bounded  northerly  by 
land  of  Mr.  Sewall  and  Joshua  Boynton,  easterly  by  the  Falls 
River,  westerly  by  the  old  road,  and  southerly  by  Easton's 
River ;  reserving  out  of  the  premises  an  annuity  of  j[,20  to 
the  said  Jeremiah  and  his  wife"  (book  25,  page  238). 

Jeremiah  Dummer  died  May  24,  171 8.  He  left  two  sons, 
Jeremiah  and  William. 

Jeremiah  graduated  at  Harvard  College  in  1699.  He  was 
elected  by  the  General  Court,  in  17 10,  commissioner  to  Eng- 
land from  the  province  of  Massachusetts  Bay  to  assert  and 
defend  the  rights  of  the  people  under  the  charter  granted  by 
the  crown.  For  nearly  thirty  years  he  performed  the  duties 
of  that  ofifice  with  honor  to  himself  and  benefit  to  his  con- 
stituents.     He  died  at  Plaistow,  England,  in  1739. 

William  Dummer,  brother  of  Jeremiah,  and  founder  of  \h)  ^^^y 
Dummer  Academy,  was  born  in  Boston  in  1677.  Soon  after 
completing  his  education  he  went  to  England,  and  for  several 
years  was  acting  commissioner  of  the  province  of  Massachu- 
setts Bay  at  Plymouth.  He  returned  to  Boston  in  171 2. 
Judge   Sewall  in  his  diary,  under  date  of  May  28,  171 2,  says,      .^3^^^  ' 

Col.  Hutchinson  surprises  us  by  bringing  AT  William  Dumer  whom 
I  know  not  arrived  May  27"^  at  Marblehead  about  4  weeks  passage 
from   Milford   Haven. 


3i8 


OULD    XEWBURY 


November  ci-iitccnth  of  that  year  he  received  from  his 
father  a  deed  of  tlie  farm  at  Newbury  h'alls,  as  previously 
stated.  It  is  probable  that  the  mansion  house  he  afterward 
occupied  was  built  about  this  time,  although  there  is  no 
evidence  to  establish  the  fact  beyond  a  reasonable  doubt. 

After  his  marriage  he  resided  in  Boston,  but  during  the 
summer  months  came  with  his  family  to  Byfield,  and  devoted 


DUMMER    MANSION. 


his  time  and  attention  to  the  cult  i\  at  ion  of  liis  tai"m.  "Fhe 
old  liouse,  wliicli  was  for  man)'  )'ears  his  sunnnei"  home,  is 
still  standing.  it  is  now  a  dormitor)'  and  boarding-place  for 
pui:)ils  connected  witli  the  academy.  Its  steep  roof  witli 
dormei'  windows,  and  the  i)eculiar  brick  projection  on  the 
northwesterly  end,  built,  it  is  saiil,  for  the  acconnnodation  of 
negro  slaves,  have  lieen  allowed  to  remain  inidisturbed  ;  but 
the  tai)estried  walls  and  nnich  of  the  heavy  wainscoting  of 
the  interior  ha\e  disappeared. 


DUMMER   ACADEMY  319 

William  Dummer  married,  April  26,  17 14,  Katherine, 
daughter  of  Joseph  Dudley,  who  was  then  governor  of  the 
province,  and  son  of  Thomas  Dudley,  one  of  the  early  gov- 
ernors of  the  colony. 

The  portrait  of  Governor  Dummer  that  formerly  adorned 
the  parlor  of  this  old  mansion  house  is  still  in  the  possession 
of  the  trustees  of  Dummer  Academy.  It  is  supposed  to 
have  been  painted  by  Robert  Feke,*  an  American  artist  of 
some  celebrity,  who  was  born  at  Oyster  Bay,  L.  I.,  about 
1725,  and  died  in  Barbadoes,  West  Indies,  about  the  year 
1765.  A  copy  of  this  portrait,  painted  by  Mr.  Frederick  P. 
Vinton,- of  Boston,  in  1886,  hangs  in  the  old  senate  chamber 
at  the  state  house  in  Boston. 

A  portrait  of  Katherine  (Dudley)  Dummer,  wife  of  Gov- 
ernor Dummer,  for  many  years  in  the  possession  of  a  collat- 
eral branch  of  the  family,  was  presented  by  Mrs.  Osgood, 
of  West  Newbury,  in  1822,  to  the  trustees  of  Dummer 
Academy,  and  is  still  in  a  good  state  of  preservation.  The 
name  of  the  artist  is  unknown.  Both  of  these  portraits 
have  been  reproduced  by  the  half-tone  process  for  the  illus- 
tration of  this  sketch. 

June  15,  1 7 16,  Colonel  Samuel  Shute  was  appointed  gov- 
ernor, and  William  Dummer  deputy  governor,  of  the  province. 
On  the  fifth  day  of  October,  17 16,  they  took  the  oath  of  office, 
and  entered  at  once  upon  the  discharge  of  their  duties.  An 
item  published  in  the  Ncivs  Letter,  and  quoted  by  Coffin 
in  the  History  of  Newbury,  states  that  in  October,  1716, 
"  Governor  Shute,  being  on  his  way  to  Portsmouth,  was  met 
by  the  Newbury  troop,  and  by  them  escorted  to  the  house  of 
Lieut.  Governor  Dummer,  where  he  passed  the  night  and  was 
finely  entertained." 

The  powers  and  privileges  reserved  to  the  crown  in  the  new 
charter  that  had  been  substituted  for  the  old  colonial  charter 

*  His  first  picture  is  said  to  have  been  painted  in  1746.  Several  of  his  portraits  are  in  the 
Bowdoin  College  collection.  His  best  work,  from  an  artistic  point  of  view,  is  the  portrait  of  Lady 
Wanton  (wife  of  Joseph  Wanton  who  was  Governor  of  Rhode  Island  from  1769  to  1775),  that 
now  hangs  in  the  Redwood  Library  at  Newport,  R.  L  Another  interesting  and  valuable  specimen 
of  his  artistic  skill  is  the  portrait  of  Rev.  John  Callender  in  the  rooms  of  the  Rhode  Island  His- 
torical Society  at  Providence. 


LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR    WILLIAM    DUMMER. 


KATHERINE    (DUDLEY)    DUMMER, 
Wife   of    Lieutenant-Governor   William    Dummer. 


32  2  OULD   NEWBURY 

aroused  a  strony;  fcclini;-  of  dissatisfaction  and  distrust.  The 
house  of  deputies  insisted  upon  a  strict  construction  of  its 
provisions,  and  persistently  opposed  the  adoption  of  measures 
that  in  any  way  interfered  with  the  rights  of  the  people. 

The  officers  of  the  crown  found  it  impossible  to  secure  by 
enactment  fixed  compensation  for  their  services  ;  and  Gov- 
ernor Shute,  after  an  administration  of  six  years,  perplexed 
and  discouraged  by  the  difficulties  of  the  situation,  sailed  for 
England  Jan.  i,  1723,  to  induce,  if  possible,  the  home  govern- 
ment to  interfere  in  his  behalf.  He  remained  in  England  for 
nearly  six  years.  During  his  absence  William  Dummer  occu- 
pied the  gubernatorial  chair. 

Judge  Samuel  Sewall,  a  kinsman  of  Governor  Dummer, 
was  at  that  time  a  member  of  the  council.  In  volume  3, 
page  317,  of  his  Diary,  he  says  :  — 

Jan'v  2,  1722-3.  His  Honour  the  L'  (lOV  (Dummer)  takes  the  oaths 
in  Council  as  to  the  Acts  relating  to  Trade  and  of  his  office.  After  M'' 
Checkley  had  pray''  the  L'  Gov''  sent  for  the  Deputies  —  in  and  made  his 
Speech.  When  the  Representatives  were  return'd  to  their  own  Cham- 
ber, I  stood  up  and  said  : 

If  your  Honour  and  this  honourable  Board  please  to  give  me  leave  I 
would  speak  a  Word  or  two  upon  this  solemn  occasion.  Although  the 
unerring  Providence  of  God  has  brought  you  to  the  Chair  of  (Govern- 
ment in  a  cloudy  and  Tempestuous  time,  yet  you  have  this  for  your 
Encouragement,  that  the  People  you  Have  to  do  with  are  a  part  of  the 
Israel  of  God  and  you  may  expect  to  have  of  the  Prudence  and  Patience 
of  Moses  communicated  to  you  for  your  Conduct.  It  is  evident  that 
our  Almiglity  Saviour  Counselled  the  first  Planters  to  remove  hither 
and  Settle  here,  and  they  dutifully  followed  his  Advice,  and  therefore  He 
will  never  leave  nor  forsake  them,  nor  Theirs ;  so  that  your  Honoiu'  must 
needs  be  happy  in  sincerely  seeking  their  Happiness  and  welfare,  which 
your  Birth  and  ]'',ducation  will  incline  you  to  do.  Difficilia  qu(P  piilclira. 
I  promise  myself  that  they  who  sit  at  this  Board  will  yield  their  l-'aithful 
Advice  to  your  Honour,  according  to  the  Duty  of  their   Place. 

The  L'  (iov''  and  Council  would  stand  up  all  the  while  and  they 
expres.sed  a  handsome  Acceptance  of  what  I  had  said.       I.aiis  Deo. 

In  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  his  high  office,  Gox'ernor 
Diunmer  i)iu-sued  a  wise  and  conciliatory  i)olicy  that  won  tor 
him  the  respect  and  esteem  of  all  who  were  in  favor  of  good 
government  and   an  impartial  administration  ol  existing  laws. 


DUMMER   ACADEMY  323 

July  28,  1728,  William  Burnet,  who  had  been  appointed 
by  the  kini;-  to  succeed  Samuel  Shute  as  governor  of  the 
province,  aiTived  in  New  England,  and  assumed  the  manage- 
ment of  public  affairs,  with  William  Dummer  as  lieutenant- 
governor. 

Governor  Burnet  died  Sept.  7,  1729;  and  Governor  Dum- 
mer was  again  at  the  head  of  the  government  until  June  30, 
1730,  when  Lieutenant-Governor  Tailer  was  appointed  to 
succeed  him.  The  following  congratulatory  letter  from 
Judge  Sewall  to  his  kinsman  is  published  in  volume  2,  page 
275,  of  Sewall's  Letter  Book:  — 

Hon'd  6-/r- These  are  to  congratulat  your  Hon''  and  this  Province 
upon  your  Returning  again  to  be  their  Lieut.  Gov^  and  Commander  .n 
chief  '  As  the  Time  is  dark  and  difficult,  so  I  hope  God  will  graciously 
renew  your  Strength,  and  anoint  you  with  fresh  oyl,  whereby  you  may 
be  enabled  prudently  and  successfully  to  manage  the  very  weighty 
Affairs  of  the  Government,  once  more  devolved  upon  you  by  Divine 
Providence,  which  cannot  err,  and  will  not  fail  those  who  Trust  themn. 
I  thank  God  who  has  Reserved  you  against  this  juncture  of  our  Dis- 
tress. And  earnestly  praying  that  the  God  of  Peace,  and  Truth,  and 
Love,  may  make  your  last  days  in  this  kind  to  be  your  best  days, 
take  leave,  who  am  your  Honor's  most  humble  and  most  obedient  berv  . 

Samuel  Sewall. 
Boston,  Septemly  the  eleventh,  1729. 

To  the  Honourable  William  Dummer  Esq",  Lieut.-Governour  and   Com- 
mander in  Chief  In  and  over  his  Maj^  Province  of  the  Massachusetts 
Bay  in  New-England. 
While  holding  office  for  this  second  short  term,  Governor 
Dummer  presented  to  the  Byfield  Parish  a  silver  communion 
service,  on  which  his  name  and  the  family  coat-of-arms  were 
inscribed      Of  this   service  only  two   small  communion  cups, 
or  chalices,  were  saved  when  the  meeting-house  was  burned 

in  1832. 

At  the  close  of  his  administration  as  governor  he  was 
elected  to  the  council  for  two  years.  He  then  retired  to 
private  life.  His  house  in  Boston  was  on  School  Street, 
separated  from  the  Province  House  estate  by  a  six-foot 
passage-way    in    the    rear.     His    wife,    Katherine     (Dudley) 


324  OULD   NEWBURY 

Dummer,  died  there  Jan.  13,  1752.  He  died  (3ct.  16,  1761, 
and  was  buried  in  the  Granary  burying  ground  on  Tremont 
Street  in  that  city. 

By  the  terms  of  his  will,  recorded  in  the  probate  records  for 
Suffolk  County,  volume  59,  page  398,  he  gave,  in  trust,  to 
"  Rev.  Mr.  Thomas  Foxcroft  and  Rev.  Dr.  Charles  Chauncy, 
ministers  of  the  first  church  in  l^oston,  and  Mr.  Nathaniel 
Dummer,  of  Newbury,  in  the  County  of  Essex,  my  dwelling- 
house  and  farm  and  all  my  real  estate  lying  and  being  in 
Newbury,"  with  instructions  that  the  rents  should  be  first  ap- 
l^ropriated  and  expended  in  erecting  a  school-house  on  the 
most  convenient  part  of  said  farm  according  to  the  appoint- 
ment of  the  minister  of  the  parish  and  five  of  the  principal 
inhabitants  freeholders  of  said  parish  to  be  elected  at  the 
annual  meeting  of  the  parish,  and  that  the  annual  income 
thereafter  should  be  "  appropriated  and  set  apart  towards  the 
maintenance  of  a  grammar  school  master." 

In  1762,  the  first  school-house  was  erected  on  the  Dummer 
farm  at  By  field.  It  was  a  low  one-story  building,  about 
twenty  feet  square.  Dedicatory  services  were  held  h'eb.  28, 
1763.  Rev.  Moses  Parsons,  then  minister  of  the  parish, 
preached  a  sermon  appropriate  to  the  occasion  from  the  text, 
"  ]^ut  the  liberal  deviseth  liberal  things,  and  by  liberal  things 
shall  he  stand"  (Isaiah  xxxii.  8). 

The  next  day,  March  i,  1763,  the  school,  under  the  charge 
of  Samuel  Moody,  of  York,  Me.,  as  master,  commenced  its 
regular  sessions.  In  1782,  an  act  of  incorporation  was  passed 
by  the  General  Court,  creating  a  board  of  trustees  and  pro- 
\iding  for  the  management  and  control  of  the  school  under 
the  title  of  "The  Trustees  of  Dummer  Academy  in  the 
County  of  Essex." 

Master  Moody  retained  his  position  as  instructor  until 
March  25,  1790.  Many  of  his  pupils  after  their  graduation 
became  distinguished  in  j^olitical  and  professional  life.  He 
died  at  Ivxeter,  N.  H.,  Dec.  17,  1790,  and  was  buried  in  the 
old  graveyard  at  York,  Me.  On  the  stone  that  marks  his 
gra\'e   is   the   following   inscription:-- 


DUMMEK   ACADEMY  325 

Integer  I'itcF  sacterisque  punts. 

Here  lies  the  remains  of  Samuel  Moody,  Esq.  Pre- 
ceptor of  Dummer  Academy,  the  first  institution  of 
the  kind  in  Massachusetts.  He  left  no  children  to 
mourn  his  sudden  death,  for  he  died  a  bachelor,  yet 
his  numerous  pupils  in  the  United  States  will  ever 
retain  a  lively  sense  of  the  sociality,  industry,  integrity 
and  piety  he  possessed  in  an  unusual  degree,  as  well  as 
the  disinterested,  zealous,  faithful  and  useful  manner 
he  discharged  the  duties  of  the  Academy  for  30  years. 
He  died  at  Exeter,  N.  H.,  December  17"'  1790,  aged 
70  years. 

Since  its  establishment  in  1763,  Dummer  Academy  has  had 
its  periods  of  prosperity  and  depression,  but,  after  more  than 
one  hundred  and  thirty  years  of  continued  existence,  it  is  still 
in  successful  operation  under  the  charge  of  Mr.  Perley  L. 
Home,  A.  M. 

For  a  more  extended  account  of  this  institution  of  learn- 
ing and  the  men  who  have  been  connected  with  it  as  trustees, 
teachers,  and  pupils,  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  centennial 
address,  delivered  by  Nehemiah  Cleaveland,  Aug.  12,  1863, 
and  to  the  interesting  historical  paper  read  by  Hon.  William 
D.  Northend  at  the  one  hundred  and  twenty-fifth  anniversary, 
June  19,  1888. 


FATHERLAND   FARM. 


Eben  Parsons,  the  second  son  of  Rev.  Moses  Parsons, 
was  born  in  the  parsonage  at  Byfield,  P'eb.  27,  1745-6-  He 
attended  school  at  Dummer  Academy  ;  and,  after  completing 
his  studies  there,  he  sought  and  obtained  employment  in 
Gloucester,  and  soon  after  became  interested  in  the  fisheries, 
which  were  at  that  time  exceedingly  prosperous  and  remun- 
erative. His  enterprise  and  activity  brought  him  in  con- 
tact with  men  of  skill  and  experience  in  the  foreign  and 
domestic  trade.  He  gradually  extended  his  business,  in- 
vesting his  surplus  capital  in  ship  property,  and  ultimately 
became  one  of  the  largest  importers  of  merchandise  in  the 
country. 

In  May,  1767,  he  married  Mary,  daughter  of  Colonel  John 
Gorham,  of  Barnstable,  and  a  few  years  later  removed  to 
Boston,  where  he  purchased  a  large  and  valuable  estate  on 
Summer  Street,  the  house  and  garden  occupying  all  the  space 
between  Otis  and  Devonshire  Streets  and  extending  back  to 
Winthrop  Square.  The  finest  residences  of  Boston  were  in 
that  neighborhood,  and  noble  shade  trees  with  flowering 
shrubs  and  spacious  gardens  gave  to  the  locality  an  air  of 
comfort  and  seclusion. 

In  the  rear  of  Mr.  Parsons's  house  stood  a  large  stable,  and 
in  front  was  an  enclosed  park,  or  common,  where  his  two  cows 
were  pastured.  Drake,  in  his  "  Old  Landmarks  of  Boston," 
says  on  page  381,  "As  late  as  181  5  there  was  a  pasture  of 
two  acres  in  Summer  Street,  and  the  tinkling  of  cow-bells 
was  by  no  means  an  uncommon  sound  there." 

P^or  more  than  thirty  years  Mr.  Parsons  made  this  house 
his  home  ;  and  at  length,  with  ample  means  at  his  command, 
he   determined   to   buy  the   old    Dummer  place  at   Newbury 


328  OULD   NEWBURY 

I'^alls,  and  tlicrc  build  a  statcl}'  summer  residence.  Sept.  17, 
1 80 1,  he  l)()ui;ht,  of  Richard  Dummer,  of  Newbury,  three 
parcels  of  land,  the  first  beini;"  bounded  and  described  as 
follows  :  — 

Northerly  on  the  Fall.s  river,  easterly  on  the  road  leading  from  Byfield 
meeting  house  to  Moody's  Mills,  south  ea.sterly  partly  on  Shuhael  Dum- 
mer's  land  and  partly  on  land  belonging  to  the  heirs  of  William  Uummer, 
deceased,  southerly  on  land  belonging  to  the  same  heirs,  and  south- 
westerly, westerly  and  northwesterly  on  the  tan-yard  creek  so  called,  .  .  . 
with  house,  barn  and  other  buildings  thereon  (Essex  Deeds,  book  169, 
page  293). 

Mrs.  A.  B.  Forbes,  in  a  paper  read  before  the  Historical 
Society  of  Old  Newbury  in  tbe  summer  of  1895,  and  pub- 
lished in  the  New  England  Historical  and  Genealogical  Reg- 
ister, January,  1896,  states  that  tbe  house  now  standing  at 
tbe  b\atherlancl  Farm  was  erected  in  1 802.  The  event  was 
a  notable  one  for  tbe  inhabitants  of  that  locality  ;  and  the 
festivities  at  tbe  raising  of  tbe  frame,  marred  by  an  accident 
of  a  somewhat  serious  nature,  are  vividly  described  by  Miss 
Sarah  Ann  Emery  in  tbe  Reminiscences  of  a  Nonogenarian, 
page  J^. 

Jan.  13,  1803,  Mr.  Parsons  bought  of  Thomas  Smith,  of 
Rowley,  twelve  acres  of  land  adjoining  this  estate,  bounded 
by  the  burying  ground  and  also  by  land  belonging  to  the 
parsonage.  June  4,  1803,  he  purchased  of  Shubael  Dummer, 
and  July  6,  1803,  of  Nathaniel  Little,  Jr.,  two  parcels  of  land 
which  he  added  to  his  farm  (Esse.x  Deeds,  book  172,  pages 
50  and  240). 

lie  continued  to  reside  in  l^oston  for  several  )'ears  after 
this  date,  but  made  frequent  visits  to  his  country  place,  which, 
"out  of  regard  for  his  father's  memory  and  love  for  bis  native 
town,  be  named  b'atherland  b'arm."  He  expended  a  large 
siuu  ot  money  in  building  massive  walls  of  hewn  stone,  seven 
feet  high  and  three  feet  thick,  about  the  premises  ;  in  reclaim- 
ing a  large  tract  of  marsh  land  along  the  margin  of  Parker 
Ri\'er,  below  tbe  falls;  and  in  otherwise  imj)ro\ing  and  beau- 
lit)'iiig  tbe  bouse  and  its  surroundings. 


FATHERLAND    FARM  3^9 

He  was  deeply  interested  in  agriculture,  and  was  a  large  contributor 
in  nianv  ways  to  the  advancement  of  that  science,  using  his  commercial 
facilities  in  aid  of  this  by  the  importation  of  fine  breeds  of  cattle,  sheep, 
and  swine  for  the  improvement  of  American  stock,  and  by  bringing 
from  other  countries  various  kinds  of  seeds,  grain,  and  grasses,  as  well 
as  scions  from  foreign  fruit  and  ornamental  trees  and  shrubs. 

After  the  death  of  his  wife,  Sept.  lO,  i8io,  he  removed 
from  Boston  to  his  farm  at  Newbm-y,  and  there  lived  until  his 
decease,  Nov.  27,  18 19.  He  was  buried,  with  other  members 
of  his  famil)',  in  the  old  graveyard  at  Byfield. 

His  son,  Gorham  Parsons,  born  in  Gloucester  July  27, 
1768,  was  the  only  surviving  child  and  only  heir  to  the  prop- 
erty. In  April,  1790,  he  married  Sarah,  daughter  of  Captain 
Thomas  Parsons,  of  Newburyport.  He  resided  at  Brighton, 
Mass.,  until  the  death  of  his  wife,  Dec.  8,  1837,  when  he  sold 
his  estate  there,  and  removed  to  the  Fatherland  I^'arm,  where 
he  died  Sept.  18,  1844,  aged  seventy-six.  His  will,  dated 
Sept.  29,  1842,  and  proved  in  the  month  of  November,  1844, 
provides  that  the  farm,  with  the  dwelling-house  and  other 
buildings  thereon,  shall  become  the  property  of  Gorham 
Parsons  Sargent,  a  grand-nephew  of  his  wife,  son  of  Hon. 
Winthrop   Sargent,   of   Philadelphia,  Pa. 

May  29,  1 862,  Gorham  Parsons  Sargent,  of  Byfield,  sold 
the  property  to  Benjamin  Y.  Brown,  of  W'altham  ;  and  a  few 
weeks  later,  July  7,  1862,  it  was  sold  at  public  auction  by 
the  last-named  owner  to  Benjamin  B.  Poole,  of  Boston,  for 
$7,300    (book  640,   pages   31    and    50). 

Nov.  30,  1877,  Benjamin  B.  Poole  sold  the  farm  with  the 
buildings  thereon  to  Jacob  B.  Stevens,  of  Peabody  (book  988, 
page  194)  ;  and  Oct.  24,  1881,  Mr.  Stevens  conveyed  the 
property  to  Mrs.  Susan  E.  P.  P^orbes,  wife  of  Alexander  B. 
Forbes,  of  Springfield,  Mass.  (book  1068,  page  176). 

Mrs.  P^orbes  is  a  descendant  of  Susanna  Parsons,  who 
was  a  sister  of  Eben  Parsons,  the  founder  of  the  P^ather- 
land  P'arm.  Mrs.  Forbes,  with  the  advice  and  assistance  of 
her  husband,  has  made  some  decided  improvements  in  the 
external  appearance  of  the  place  during  the  past  fifteen  years, 
especially  in  the  removal  of  the  old  barn  that  formerly  stood 


330  OULD    NEWBURY 

directly  (ippositc  the  house.  The  view  of  the  surrounding- 
country  is  now  much  more  extended,  and  the  old  homestead 
seems  to  have  regained  something  of  its  old-time  stateliness, 
while  everything  about  the  grounds  betokens  tender  and 
appreciative  care. 


THEOPHILUS  PARSONS. 


In  the  old  parsonage  house  at  Byfield  there  was  born 
Feb.  24,  1750,  to  Rev.  Moses  Parsons  and  his  wife  Susan,  a 
third  son.  This  son  was  christened  Theophilus.*  He  was 
prepared  for  college  by  Master  Moody  at  Dummer  Academy, 
and  graduated  at  Harvard  College  in  1769.  He  afterward 
studied  law  with  Theophilus  Bradbury  at  Falmouth,  now 
Portland,  Me.,  and  was  admitted  to  practice  there  in  1774. 

In  October,  1775,  some  luiglish  ships-of-war  almost  totally 
destroyed  Portland  ;  and  Theophilus  Parsons  returned  to 
Byfield,  and  found  at  his  father's  house  Judge  Fdmund 
Trowbridge,  of  Cambridge,  an  eminent  lawyer,  with  loyalist 
tendencies,  who  had  come  to  Byfield  to  escape  the  violence 
of  the  watchful  "  Sons  of  Liberty."  With  the  aid  and  assist- 
ance of  this  learned  judge,  young  Parsons  made,  during  the 
next  two  years,  a  thorough  and  exhaustive  study  of  the 
principles  of  common  law,  and  applied  himself  so  assiduously 
to  the  work  that  his  health  for  a  time  was  seriously  impaired. 

After  a  few  weeks  of  rest  and  recreation  he  opened  a  law 
office  in  Newburyport.  At  a  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of 
the  town,  held  March  27,  1778,  Theophilus  Parsons,  Tristram 
Dalton,  Jonathan  Greenleaf,  Jonathan  Jackson,  and  Stephen 
Cross  were  chosen  delegates  to  the  convention  held  at 
Ipswich  in  April  of  that  year  for  the  consideration  of  ques- 
tions relating  to  the  principles  and  provisions  of  the  proposed 
constitution  for  the  State  of  Massachusetts. 

*  An  old  almanac  in  which  the  events  of  the  clay  were  noted  by  Re\-.  Mr.  Parsons  contains  the 
following  account  of  an  interesting  incident :  — 

"Theophilus  strayed  away  and  was  lost  June  30,  i753,  and  after  much  seeking  was  found  m 
Mr  Woodman's  Pasture  where  he  had  laid  down  to  sleep.  May  he  be  found  indeed  by  ye  Grace 
of  God,  and  ye  kind  Shephard  yt  loves  ye  Lambs  of  his  Fold.  May  there  be  greater  Joy  in 
Heav'n  at  his  conversion  than  there  was  with  his  Parents  wh"  yy  rec'd  him  safe  and  sound  as  Life 
from  ye  dead." 


332  OULD    NEWBURY 

Mr.  rarsons,  tli(iuj;h    iIkmi    a   yoimi;'   man   of  t\vcnty-ciL;-ht, 
wrote    the    excec(linj;iy    able    aiul    loi;ical     report     tliat    was 
adopted  by  tlie  convention,  publislied    in   panipblet   form,  and 
widely  circulated    throui;hout    the    State    under  the  title   of 
"The    Result    of    the    Convention    of    Delegates    holden    at 
Ipswich,  in  the  Count}'  of   Essex,  who   were  de}nited  to   take 
into    Consideration   the    Constitution   and    Vi^xxw    of    Govern- 
ment  ]:)roposed   by   the   Convention    of   the   State  of    Massa- 
chusetts Bay."      This 
famous    report    is 
known    in    history  as 
"The  Essex  Result." 
Early  in    the    year 
1779,  Hon.  Benjamin 
Greenleaf,    judge    of 
probate    for    P^ssex 
County,    who    then 
lived    on    the    corner 
of    Washington     and 
Titcomb  streets,  said 
to  his  daughter  Eliza- 
beth   that    on    a   cer- 
tain   day  she    must 
provide  dinner    for  a 
few  friends  whom   he 
named  ;   and  among  the  number  was   "  Mr.   Parsons."      "  Do 
you   mean   Mr.    Parsons  whom   everybody  is  talking  about .'' " 
said    Miss    p:iizabeth.      "Why,    I   shall    not    dare    to   utter  a 
word."      "Well,"  answered  the   judge,   "you  need   not.      He 
will    talk    for    }'ou    and    himself,    too,    if    }'ou    wish    it."      The 
sequel  shows  that  "he  talked  then  and  afterward  well  enough 
to  win  a  suit   which  he  used  to  say  was  worth  all  the  others 
he  had  ever  gained   in   his  life  ;  for  in  less  than  a  year  after 
that     dimier     he     married,    Jan.    13,     1 780,    Miss     l^lizabeth 
Cireenleaf." 

At  this  time  his  law  business  was  i^irosperous,  and  his 
position  in  the  social  and  political  woiid  was  well  established. 
.Students    f|-oni    distant     towns,  attracted    b\-    his    piotessional 


THEOPHILUS    PARSONS. 


TIIEOPHILUS  PARSONS  ZZl) 

ability  and  intellectual  superiority,  came  to  him  for  advice 
and  instruction.  Rufus  King,  born  in  Scarboro,  Me.,  and 
afterward  senator  to  congress  from  the  State  of  New  York, 
was  for  several  years  a  student  in  his  office,  and  in  1782 
and  1783  was  elected  warden  of  St.  Paul's  Church.  He 
also  represented  Newburyport  in  the  legislature  of  1783, 
and  was  a  member  of  the  constitutional  convention  of  1788. 
John  Ouincy  Adams,  afterward  president  of  the  United 
States,  and  Robert  Treat  Paine,  son  of  the  signer  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  of  the  same  name,  were  fitted 
and  prepared  for  the  practice  of  law  under  the  care  and 
direction  of  Mr.  Parsons.  A  poem,  somewhat  satirical  in 
tone,  but  still  a  graceful  contribution  to  the  literature  of  that 
day,  entitled  "  A  Vision,"  written  by  John  O.  Adams,  created 
considerable  excitement  and  some  consternation  among  the 
young  ladies  of  Newburyport,  who,  under  fictitious  names, 
were  described  in  glowing  language  by  the  poet.  The  theme 
and  its  treatment  indicate  that  the  gifted  author  was  not 
entirely  indifferent  to  the  fascinations  and  attractions  of  the 
opposite  sex,  and  occasionally  found  in  female  society  a  relief 
from  the  tedium  of  long-continued  study. 

In  1788,  a  convention  of  delegates  from  the  various  towns 
in  Massachusetts  assembled  in  Boston  to  determine  whether 
the  Federal  constitution  should  be  adopted  or  rejected  by 
the  State.  Theophilus  Parsons  was  a  member  of  the  con- 
vention with  Jonathan  Titcomb,  Benjamin  Greenleaf,  and 
Rufus  King  from  Newburyport,  and  Ebenezer  March,  Enoch 
Sawyer,  and  Tristram  Dalton  from  Newbury. 

The  proceedings  of  the  convention  were  of  great  impor- 
tance, and  were  so  regarded  throughout  the  country  at  that 
time.  It  was  thought  at  the  beginning  of  the  session  that  a 
majority  of  the  delegates  were  opposed  to  the  adoption  of 
the  constitution.  John  Hancock  and  Samuel  Adams  were 
the  two  most  important  members  of  the  cc^nvention.  "  It 
was  generally  supposed  that,  while  they  were  not  friendly  to 
each  other,  they  agreed  in  a  decided  leaning  against  the 
constitution  ;    and,    if    both,   or    if    either,    had    become    pro- 


THEOPHILUS   PARSONS  335 

fessedly  and   actively  hostile  to   it,  its   adoption   would   prob- 
ably have  been  impossible." 

The  means  and  methods  by  which  Hancock  and  Adams, 
on  whom  so  much  depended,  were  brought  over  to  support 
the  friends  of  the  constitution,  are  given  with  great  clearness 
in  the  memoir  of  Chief-Justice  Parsons,  written  by  his  son, 
Prof.  Theophilus  Parsons,  and  published  in  1859.  The 
amendments,  or  conciliatory  resolutions  as  they  are  some- 
times called,  offered  by  Hancock  and  adopted  by  the  con- 
vention, were  carefully  prepared  by  Parsons ;  and  at  his 
suggestion,  or  through  his  influence,  Hancock  was  prevailed 
upon  to  support  them  with  a  brief  speech,  and  so  gain  credit 
with  the  F'ederalists  for  saving  the  constitution.  Samuel 
Adams  declared  himself  satisfied  with  the  proposed  amend- 
ments ;  and,  after  a  brief  debate,  a  vote  was  taken  which 
resulted  in  a  majority  of  nineteen  in  favor  of  the  adoption  of 
the  constitution  out  of  a  total  of  three  hundred  and  fifty-five 
votes.  The  plan,  devised  by  Theophilus  Parsons,  had  its 
desired  effect  ;  and  the  difficulties  and  dangers  apprehended 
from  an  adverse  action  of  the  convention  were  averted  by 
his  political  skill  and  sagacity. 

After  the  adoption  of  the  constitution  he  gave  but  little 
time  or  attention  to  politics.  His  professional  duties  called 
him  frecjuently  to  the  principal  towns  and  cities  of  New 
England  and  occasionally  to  New  York  and  Washington. 
He  occupied  his  leisure  hours  with  books  and  social  converse 
at  his  own  house,  seldom  attending  a  public  meeting  of  any 
kind  during  the  last  twenty  years  of  his  life. 

May  2,  1789,  he  bought  of  Benjamin  Greenleaf  seventy-six 
square  rods  of  land  on  the  corner  of  Green  and  Union  (now 
Washington)  streets,  bounded  on  the  northwesterly  and 
southwesterly  sides  by  land  of  the  grantor.  At  the  time  of 
this  sale  all  the  land  now  included  between  Green,  Washing- 
ton, Court,  and  High  streets  was  the  property  of  Benjamin 
Greenleaf,  to  whom  it  was  conveyed  by  Nathaniel  Tracy 
Dec.  19,  1783  (book  145,  page  145,  and  book  151,  page  122). 

On  the  land  purchased  in  1789,  Theophilus  Parsons  built 
a  large  and  substantial  house,  with  stables  adjoining.      A  low, 


:iZC>  OULD   Nl-.IVBURY 

onc-story  buildint;'  on  the  easterly  corner  of  the  lot  was  used 
as  a  law  ofifice.  Tlie  dwelling-house  is  still  standing  in  a 
good  state  of  preservation,  tliough  somewhat  modernized  by 
recent  owners. 

The  view  that  accom[)anies  this  sketch  is  taken  from  a 
drawing  made  b)'  I-'rancis  Thurlow.  The  artist  has  iM-acti- 
cally  reproduced  the  house  as  it  was  when  owned  and  occu- 
pied by  Benjamin  Hale,  previous  to  1850.  At  that  date  no 
changes  or  alterations  had  been  made,  and  it  stt)od  sub- 
stantially as  it  was  when  first  built.  The  descripti\-e  details 
for  the  sketch  were  furnished  by  Mr.  Moses  E.  Hale,  who 
lived  with  his  father  in  the  house  at  the  date  above  men- 
tioned. 

Hon.  Benjamin  Greenleaf,  father  of  Mrs.  Parsons,  died 
Jan.  13,  1799;  and  the  following  year  Mr.  Parsons  removed 
with  his  family  to  l-)Oston.  He  occupied  a  house  on  Brom- 
field  Street  until  1801,  when  he  bought  a  fine  estate  on  the 
easterly  side  of  Pearl  Street. 

April  25,  1803,  he  sold  his  house,  stable,  and  lands  in 
Newburyport  to  Leonard  Smith  (l^ssex  Deeds,  book  179, 
page  198). 

The  subsequent  conveyances  of  this  property  are  as 
follows  :  — 

March  23,  1809,  Leonard  Smith  to  Jt)hn  I'eabody,  of  New- 
buryport (book  186,  page  29). 

Dec.  31,  1810,  John  Peabody  to  Leonard  Smith  (book  192. 
page  164). 

Jan.  2,  181  I,  Leonard  Smith  to  Nathaniel  Smith  (book 
192,  ])age  168). 

Jan.  22,  18 1 3,  execution  in  fa\or  of  INIichael  Little,  New- 
buryjiort  ALu'ine  Insurance  Compan)',  anil  olheis  (  h^.x  cent  ions, 
book  No.   I,  i)age  288). 

Ai)ril  29,  1 814,  Newbur)|)ort  Marine  Insuiance  COmpau)' 
to  ( )li\er  Prescott  (book  204,  page  145). 

Jan.  I,  1 8 14,  I'^Dcnezer  Wheelwright,  Paul  Thurlo,  and 
Da\'id  Moody  to  Oliver  Prescott  (book  204,  and  pages  49 
and  50). 


THKOPHILUS    PARSONS  337 

June  2  1,  1828,  Charles  Prescott,  manner,  Harriet  Prescott, 
Caroline  Prescott,  and  Anna  Prescott,  all  of  Boston,  19/24  of 
land  and  buildings  to  Sarah  Hale,  wife  of  Benjamin  Hale,  of 
Newburyport  (book  250,  page  5). 

Sept.  22,  1828,  Lucy  O.  Prescott,  of  Boston,  5/24  of  land 
and  buildings  to  Sarah,  wife  of  Benjamin  Hale,  of  Newbury- 
port (book  250,  page  61). 

March  7,  1832,  Benjamin  Hale  and  wife  Sarah  to  Eunice 
W.  Hale  (book  265,  page  132). 

March  7,  1832,  lumice  W.  Hale  to  Benjamin  Hale  (book 
265,  page  132). 

Feb.  10,  185 1,  Moses  E.  Hale,  executor  of  the  will  of 
Benjamin  Hale,  to  Henry  Johnson  (book  440,  page  144). 

June  I,  1852,  Moses  E.  Hale,  trustee  under  the  will  of 
Benjamin  Hale,  to  Henry  Johnson  (book  461,  page  174). 

June  7,  1852,  Henry  Johnson  to  Elizabeth  LeBreton  Wills 
(book  461,  page  174). 

April  13,  1885,  Elizabeth  LeBreton  Wills,  widow,  to 
Nathaniel  Dole,  of  New  York    (book    1147,   page  44). 

July  5,  1886,  Nathaniel  Dole  to  Archbishop  John  J. 
Williams,  of  Boston    (book    11 76,   page    182). 

Since  1886  there  has  been  no  change  in  ownership.  The 
house  is  at  present  occupied  by  the  Sisters  of  Charity  in 
connection  with  their  work  in  the  parochial  school  of  the 
Church  of  the  Immaculate  Conception,  Newburyport. 

In  1806,  Chief-Justice  Dana  resigned  the  position  that  he 
had  honorably  filled  for  fourteen  years,  and  Theophilus  Par- 
sons was  appointed  to  the  office  thus  made  vacant.  At  the 
earnest  solicitation  of  friends  he  accepted  the  appointment, 
and  served  as  chief  justice  of  the  supreme  court  of  Massa- 
chusetts until  his  death,  Oct.  30,  181  3. 

In  the  summer  of  that  year  he  complained  of  ill-health  and 
lack  of  strength  and  vitality.  During  his  last  illness  his 
mind  remained  for  a  time  unimpaired,  then  drowsiness 
deepened  into  lethargy.  His  thoughts,  when  he  could  no 
longer  control  them,  went  back  to  his  professional  and  judi- 
cial duties.      When  he  spoke,  it  was  as  a  judge  giving  answers 


33^  OULD   NEWBURY 

aiul  directions.  After  a  long  and  painful  silence,  when  he 
seemed  to  have  kjst  the  power  of  articulation,  he  suddenly 
revived,  and  with  perfect  distinctness  said:  "Gentlemen  of 
the  jury,  the  case  is  closed,  and  in  your  hands.  You  will 
please  retire,  and  agree  upon  your  verdict."  He  then  quietly 
and  peacefully  breathed  his  last. 


PIPE  STAVE  HILL. 


In  the  division  of  the  upper  commons,  so  called,  among 
the  freeholders  and  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Newbury,  m 
1686,  the  first  division  of  the  freehold  lots  began  at  the 
Emery  farm  just  above  the  Artichoke  River,  each  lot  stretch- 
ino-  from  the  Merrimack  River  to  the  Bradford  road.  In 
this  division,  lot  No.  12  was  given  to  William  Chandler  for 
William  Berry's  freehold  right.  It  was  bounded  on  its  west- 
erly side  by  a  four-rod  highway  to  Indian  River  landu.g-place. 
Lot  No  13,  on  the  westerly  side  of  this  way,  was  allotted  to 
Joseph  Knight  for  Richard  Littlehale's  freehold  right. 

At  a  later  d^e  this  way,  as  laid  out  to  the  landmg-place, 
was  found  to  be  inconvenient  ;  and  the  proprietors  of  the 
town,  at  a  meeting  held  Oct.  30,  1706,  voted  to  authorize 
the  selectmen  to  lay  out  a  new  way  on  the  westerly  side  of 
Joseph  Knight's  lot  in  place  of  the  old  one  on  the  easterly 
side  This  vote  was  promptly  executed.  Under  date  of 
Nov  I,  1706,  the  Proprietors'  Records  contain  the  report 
in  full  of  Nathaniel  Coffin,  Caleb  Moody,  and  Abiel  Somerby. 
selectmen,  making  the  exchange  as  proposed  and  fixmg  the 
bounds  and  limits  of  the  new  way.  In  concluding  the  report 
the  selectmen  say  that 

Y^  wood  &  timber  on  s''  way  is  to  abide  and  remain  for  ye  use 
of  s<i  kni<.ht,  to  be  disposed  off  as  he  pleases,  only  so  much  of  it  is 
:  served  :s  hall  be  mlde  use  of  for  r  making  a  way  convemen  for 
pasTnt  with  Teams  and  foot  persons,  &  y^  s'^  knight  doth  acknowledge 
him  el?  TuUv  satisfied  for  s'^  way,  with  r  Land  fore  mentioned  on  r 
elTtSy  lide  of  his  Lott  which  was  a  Highway  next  to  William  Sawyers 
land. 

This  way  is  called  Coffin's  lane  on  the  map  of  the  West 
Parish  of  Newbury,  drawn  by  John  Brown,  surveyor,  m  1729. 


PIPE   STAVE   HILL  341 

Tristram  Coifiii,  at  that  date,  owned  the  lioiise  and  lot  on  the 
westerly  corner  of  the  liradford  road  and  the  way  leading;  to 
the  landing-place  near  the  mouth  of  Indian  River. 

Notwithstanding"  the  fact  that  Joseph  Knight  had  acknowl- 
edged himself  fully  satisfied  with  the  new  way  laid  out  by  the 
selectmen,  it  appears  from  the  following  extract  from  the 
town  records  that  he  afterward  manifested  some  sijjns  of 
discontent  :  — 

At  a  Meeting  of  the  ffreeholders  or  Cofnoners  of  the  Town  of  Newbury, 
June  iS^'\  1707,  Lieut  Coll  Noyes,  Esq"".,  Moderator. 

Where  as  y''  was  some  misunderstanding  between  Ensign  Joseph 
Knight  and  the  select-men  w"  w'  appointed  and  empw"'  to  exchange  the 
highway  w"'  him  y'  sd  Knight  w<^  is  above  Recorded  &  by  reason  y'  y^' 
sd  Joseph  Knight  is  agrieved  and  Looks  upon  himselfe  agrieved  and 
wronged  or  disadvantaged  by  the  sd  exchange  :  Therefore  for  y'^'  satis- 
faction of  the  sd  Knight  the  Town  grants  him  the  liberty  of  hanging 
of  two  gates,  one  at  the  upper  end  of  the  way  above  w'^  him  ex- 
change[d]  next  Bradford  Roade  and  the  other  at  the  Low''  and  next 
Merrimack  Riv',  and  y'  is  for  the  full  satisfaction  of  the  sd  Ensigne 
Joseph  Knight,  &  farth''  it  is  to  be  und'stood  y'  y*"  gate  w*-'  is  to  be  hung 
at  the  Low''  end  of  sd  way  is  to  be  hung  near  the  mouth  of  Indian  Riv 
a  cross  the  sd  Riv,  y''  last  sd  Gate  to  be  so  conveniently  hung  y'  it  may 
open  w"^  the  flood  &  shut  w*'^  the  ebb. 

On  the  map  of  1 729  of  the  West  Parish  of  Newbury,  house 
No.  59,  at  the  crest  of  Pipe  Stave  Hill,  on  the  easterly  side 
of  Indian  River,  is  set  down  to  Tristram  Knight,  who  was  a 
son  of  Joseph  Knight  ;  while  the  next  house  (No.  58),  still 
farther  east,  marked  on  the  map  as  owned  by  William 
Sawyer,  is  evidently  located  on  the  lot  originally  granted 
to  William  Chandler. 

Some  years  later,  Michael  Dalton,  then  a  prosperous  and 
influential  merchant,  living  on  Fish  Street,  Newbury, —  now 
State  Street,  Newburyport, —  bought  of  different  owners  two 
hundred  acres  of  land,  including  the  lot  granted  by  the  town 
of  Newbury  to  Joseph  Knight,  on  the  summit  of  Pipe  Stave 
Hill,  and  there  erected  a  fine  house,  which  he  occupied  as  a 
country  seat  until  his  death  in  1770. 

His  son,  Tristram  Dalton,  then  came  into  possession  of  the 


342  OULD   XKWBURY 

property,  and  founc]  pleasure  and  profit  in  the  ownershij)  and 
management  of  this  attractixe  and  productive  farm.  He  was 
liberal  in  his  household  expenditures,  and  with  lavish  hospi- 
tality entertained  many  distinguished  travellers  at  his  country 
home. 

Brissot  de  Warville,  in  his  Travels  in  America  (page  256), 
says  :  — 

We  left  Portsmouth  on  Sunday,  and  came  to  dine  at  Mr.  Dalton's, 
five  miles  from  Newbury,  on  the  Merrimack.  This  is  one  of  the  finest 
situations  that  can  be  imagined.  It  presents  an  agreeable  prospect  of 
seven  leagues.  This  farm  is  extremely  well  arranged.  1  saw  on  it 
thirty  cows,  numbers  of  sheep,  etc.,  and  a  well-furnished  garden.  Mr. 
Dalton  occupies  himself  much  in  gardening,  a  thing  generally  neglected 
in  America.  He  has  fine  apples,  grapes,  and  pears  ;  but  he  complains 
that  children  steal  them,  an  offence  readily  pardoned  in  a  free  country. 

Mr.  Dalton  received  me  with  that  frankness  which  bespeaks  a  man 
of  worth  and  talents ;  with  that  hospitality  which  is  more  general  in 
Massachusetts  and  New  Hampshire  than  in  the  other  States. 

The  Americans  are  not  accustomed  to  what  we  call  grand  feasts. 
They  treat  strangers  as  they  treat  themselves  every  day,  and  they  live 
well.  They  say  they  are  not  anxious  to  starve  themselves  the  week  in 
order  to  gormandize  on  Sunday.  This  trait  will  paint  to  you  a  people 
at  their  ease,  who  wish  not  to  torment  themselves  for  show. 

Mr.  Dalton's  house  presented  me  with  the  image  of  a  true  patriarchal 
family  and  of  great  domestic  felicity.  It  is  composed  of  four  or  five 
handsome  young  women,  drest  with  decent  simplicity,  his  amiable  wife, 
and  his  venerable  father  of  eighty  years.  This  respectable  old  man 
preserves  a  good  memory,  a  good  appetite,  and  takes  habitual  exercise. 
He  has  no  wrinkles  in  his  face,  which  seems  to  be  a  characteristic  of 
American  old  age.      At  least,  1  have  observed  it. 

Samuel  Hreck,  who  was  born  in  l^jston  July  17,  177 1, 
and  in  1792  remoxed  to  Philadelphia,  where  he  died  iVug.  31, 
1862,  was  a  visitor  at  Pipe  Stave  Hill  when  c|uite  a  young 
man;  and  on  page  97  of  his  Diary  and  Recollections,  edited 
by  Mr.  H.  K.  Scudder  and  published  in  1877,  there  is  an 
intere.sting  description  of  Tristram  Dalton's  countr}-  home, 
which  reads  as  follows  :  — 

During  tlie  year  i  7.S7  I  made  nian\-  exciu'sions  around  the  country, 
and   among    them   one   in   company   with   mv   sister    llannali   (now    Mrs. 


PIPE   STAVE   HILL  343 

Lloyd)  to  Newburyport,  to  visit  our  friend  Tristram  Dalton.  That 
gentleman  lived  in  elegance  and  comfort  at  a  very  beautiful  country 
house  four  miles  from  Newburyport  during  the  summer,  and  in  winter 
occupied  his  spacious  mansion  in  that  town.  I  do  not  recollect  any 
establishment  in  our  country,  then  or  now,  that  contained  generally  so 
many  objects  fitted  to  promote  rational  happiness.  From  the  piazza 
or  front  part  of  his  country-house  the  farms  were  so  numerous  and  the 
villages  so  thickly  planted  that  eighteen  steeples  were  in  view.  This 
villa  was  large,  well  built,  and  surrounded  by  an  excellent  dairy  and 
other  outhouses.  His  family,  consisting  wholly  of  women,  was  ex- 
tremely hospitable;  and  no  man  in  Massachusetts  had  more  dignified  or 
polished  manners  than  Mr.  I^alton  himself.  It  was  among  these  good 
people  we  went  to  spend  a  few  clays,  and  most  happily  did  we  pass 
them.  Respectable  and  amiable  family,  how  enviable  was  your  situa- 
tion at  that  time  !  And  who  would  have  thought  that  in  a  few  years 
all  this  elegance  and  contentment  were  to  give  place  to  sorrow  and 
poverty?  In  1789  the  establishments  were  broken  up,  Mr.  Dalton 
became  a  politician.  Popular  favor  flattered  him,  and  step  by  step 
ambition  lured  him  from  his  delightful  abode.  Happening  to  be  a  mem- 
ber of  the  State  legislature  at  the  time  it  was  called  upon  by  the  new 
constitution  to  choose  a  senator  to  Congress,  he  was  unluckily  elected. 
Then  came  the  bustle  and  expense  of  a  suitable  outfit.  Home,  that 
dear  home  where  so  much  felicity  had  been  enjoyed,  was  forsaken, — 
temporarily,  as  they  first  supposed,  but  everlastingly,  as  it  turned  out. 
The  whole  family  removed  to  New  York,  where  Congress  then  sat.  A 
large  house  was  taken,  and  a  course  of  fashionable  life  adopted.  Ex- 
penses increased  with  dissipation ;  a  relish  for  gay  and  foolish  extrava- 
gance became  habitual;  and  Mr.  Dalton,  who  thought  himself  elected 
for  six  years,  drew  in  the  classification  of  senators  that  took  place  in 
the  first  Congress  the  lot  which  terminated  his  senatorial  career  in  two 
years,  and  he  was  not  re-elected.  Then  was  the  time  for  him  to  have 
returned  home.  But  caressed  by  President  Washington,  and  fascinated 
by  the  gaudy  pleasures  of  a  city  life,  he  followed  the  government  to 
Philadelphia,  and  afterwards  (in  iSoi)  to  the  city  of  Washington. 
There  he  gradually  consumed  his  fortune,  dwindled  into  a  dependent 
man,  died  insolvent,  and  left  his  lady-like  and  amiable  widow  so  poor 
that  she  was  obliged,  at  more  than  seventy  years  of  age,  to  open  a 
boarding-house  in  the  neighborhood  of  Boston.  I  was  attached  by 
feelings  of  respect  and  warm  regard  to  that  estimable  family,  and  very 
sincerely  regretted  its  downfall. 

Sept.  20,  1794,  Tristram  Dalton  sold  to  Joseph  Stanwood, 
of  Newburyport,  merchant,  for  ^3,700,  his  farm  in  Newbury, 
consisting"  of  three  pieces  of  land  on   Pipe  Stave  and  Arche- 


344  OULD   NEWBURY 

laus  Hills,  fontainiiii;'  about  one  hundred  and  ninety-four 
acres,  the  mansion  house  standing;-  on  the  fort3--acre  lot,  etc. 
(Essex   Deeds,  hook  158,  page  179). 

Nov.  25,  1820,  Joseph  Stanwood,  of  West  Newbury,  gentle- 
man, sold  to  Enoch  Moody,  of  Newburyport,  the  premises 
described  above,  "with  mansion  house  I  now  live  in,  &c., 
which  place  was  conveyed  by  Tristram  Dalton  to  my  father, 
Joseph  Stanwood,  deceased,  Sept.  20,  1794." 

June  19,  1833,  Luther  Lawrence,  guardian  of  Hannah  M., 
daughter  of  Paul  Moody,  of  Lowell,  sold  to  Susan  Moody,  of 
Lowell,  widow,  a  portion  of  the  "  Stanwood  farm,"  "  where 
the  mansion  house  of  Joseph  Stanwood  lately  stood  and  in 
which  he  lately  lived,  with  the  other  buildings  now  standing 
thereon"  (Essex  Deeds,  book  277,  page  206). 

July  30,  1839,  Susan  M.  Moody,  of  Lowell,  sold  one-half 
the  farm  with  buildings  thereon  to  William  H.  Moody,  of 
West  Newbury  (book  329,  page  i). 

April  27,  1842,  Susan  M.  Moody,  of  Lowell,  widow,  sold  to 
Dr.  Dean  Robinson,  of  W^est  Newbury,  one-half  of  forty  acres 
of  land  with  buildings  thereon,  bounded  on  the  south  by  the 
Bradford  road,  on  the  west  partly  by  land  of  Caleb  Moody, 
deceased,  and  partly  by  the  Lidian  River,  on  the  north  by 
the  road  at  the  Merrimack  River,  and  on  the  east  by  the  land 
of  Stephen  Pk)oper,  deceased.  Also  one  hundred  and  thirty 
acres  of  land  on  the  southerly  side  of  the  Bradford  road, 
bounded  by  land  of  Edward  Bayley,  deceased,  on  the  east,  by 
land  of  Caleb  Moody,  Abner  Bailey,  and  Moses  Brickett  on 
the  south,  and  by  land  of  Moses  Brickett  and  Caleb  ]\L)ody 
on  the  west  (book  331,  page  48). 

April  13,  1842,  George  II.  Carleton.  administratoi"  of  the 
estate  of  William  II.  Moody,  of  Lowell,  deceased,  sold  to  Dr. 
Dean  Robinson,  of  West  Newbury,  one-half  the  land  and 
buildings  described  above  (book  331,  page  62). 

April  27,  1842,  Martha  B.  Moody,  widow,  ct)nveved  b)' 
quitclaim  deed  to  Dr.  Dean  Robinson,  of  West  Newbury, 
"  one-half  of  the  Stanwootl  farm  in  WY^st  Newbur\-,  which  was 
owned  by  my  late  husband  William  II.  Mood\-,  deceased, 
being    the    same    land     conveyed    b\'    (ieorge     II.    Carleton, 


PIPE   STAVE   HILL  345 

administrator  of   said  W.  H.  Moody,  to  the  grantee  April  13, 
1842"  (book  331,  page  61). 

Dr.  Robinson  was  born  in  Andover,  Mass.,  April  15,  1788. 
He  married  Mrs.  Elizabeth  F.  Farnham,  a  widow  with  two 
children,  and  removed  to  Newbury  (now  West  Newbury)  in 
181 1.  He  was  an  eminent  physician  with  a  large  practice, 
extending  beyond  the  limits  of  West  Newbury  to  Amesbury, 
Salisbury,  Newburyport,  Georgetown,  and  Rowley.  He  died 
Aug.  22,  1863,  and  was  buried  in  the  Oak  Hill  Cemetery, 
Newburyport.  By  the  terms  of  his  will,  proved  Sept.  15, 
1863,  he  devised  to  his  only  child,  Martha  L.  Moody,  one 
undivided  half  of  all  his  real  estate,  and  to  her  son,  Samuel 
Moody,  "  all  the  rest  and  residue." 

Samuel  Moody  died  July  25,  1877.  By  his  will,  proved 
Oct.  I,  1877,  he  gave  to  his  mother,  Martha  L.  Moody,  all 
his  real   estate   in  West   Newbury,  with   power   to  dispose  of 

the  same. 

Martha  L.  Moody  died  Oct.  27,  1890.  Her  will  was  proved 
Dec.  I,  1890,  and  provides  for  the  disposal  of  the  homestead 
and  farm,  as  follows  :  — 

All  the  lands  and  real  estate,  including  the  farm  in  said  West  New- 
bury on  which  I  now  reside,  which  were  devised  to  my  late  son.  Samuel 
Moody,  and  myself  by  my  late  father,  Dean  Robinson,  ...  I  give  and 
bequeath  to  Horace  Moody,  son  of  the  late  Horace  J.  Moody,  of 
Yonkers,  N.  Y. 

The  house  in  which  Tristram  Dalton  lived  was  taken  down 
nearly  sixty  years  ago,  and  the  one  now  standing  on  the 
summit  of  the  hill  was  probably  erected  between  the  years 
1835  and  1840.  Extensive  alterations  and  improvements 
have  been  made  in  the  house,  externally  and  internally,  since 
it  came  into  the  possession  of  its  present  proprietor,  Mr. 
Horace  Moody,  of  New  York. 

In  1686,  when  the  upper  commons  were  divided  among 
the  freeholders  of  the  town  of  Newbury,  Pipe  Stave  Hill  was 
covered  with  a  dense  forest  of  oak  and  birch  trees,  from 
which  were  cut  and  shipped  to  Europe  and  to  the  West 
Indies  large  quantities  of  staves  for  wine  casks  and  molasses 


346  OULD   NEWBURY 

hof;;.sheads.  }^^)r  many  years  this  was  a  flourishing  inckistry, 
and  the  localit}'  wiiere  tliese  staves  were  cut  soon  came  to  be 
known  as  Pipe  Stave  Hill. 

The  forests  have  long  since  disappeared,  and  thickly  set- 
tled towns  and  villages  have  taken  their  place.  Farm-houses, 
factories,  churches,  and  other  signs  of  civilization  add  to  the 
rural  beauty  of  the  scene  ;  while  far  to  the  eastward  the  blue 
waters  of  the  Atlantic,  now  as  in  the  days  of  old  are  plainly 
\isiblc,  with  Cape  Ann  in  the  distance,  and  low  down  on  the 
horizon  the  dim  outline  of  the  Isles  of  Shoals.  From  the 
highest  point,  in  the  rear  of  the  house,  some  of  the  promi- 
nent hills  in  New  Hampshire  can  be  easily  distinguished  on 
a  bright,  clear  da}' ;  and  in  the  immediate  foreground  is  a 
lovely  view  of  the  Merrimack  River  winding  its  way  to  the 
sea. 


INDIAN   HILL 


In  the  records  of  the  town  of  Newbury,  under  date  of 
April  1 6,  1650,  the  first  mention  of  Indian  Hill  is  made  in  a 
deed  of  conveyance,  si^i^ned  by  "  Great  Tom,  Indian,"  which 
reads  as  follows  :  — 

Witness  by  these  presents  that  I,  Great  Tom,  Indian,  for  and  in 
consideration  of  three  pounds  in  hand  paid  by  and  received  of  the 
townsmen  of  Newbury,  have  given,  granted,  covenanted,  and  fully  bar- 
gained, and  for  and  by  these  presents  do  give,  grant,  convey,  conlirme. 
bargain,  and  sell  all  that  my  thirty  acres  of  planting  land  as  it  is  fenced 
in  one  entire  fence  in  Newbury,  lying  neere  Indian  hill,  with  all  my 
right,  title,  and  interest  in  all  the  woods,  commons,  and  lands  that  I 
have  in  the  township  of  Newbury  to  have  and  to  hold,  all  the  said 
premises  Respectively  to  bee  to  the  proper  use  and  behoof  to  the  said 
Inhabitants  of  the  Said  Towne  of  Newbury,  their  heirs,  executors, 
administrators,  and  assignes  for  ever,  and  I,  the  said  Great  Tom, 
Indian,  doe  hereby  engage  and  bind  myself,  mine  heirs,  executors,  and 
assignes  unto  Mr.  William  Gerish,  Abraham  Toppan,  and  Anthony 
Somerby,  being  Townsmen  in  the  behalf  of  Said  Towne,  to  warrantize 
the  said  Bargained  premises  to  the  said  Towne  and  for  ever  defend. 

In  witness  whereof   I  the  said  Great  Tom.  Indian,  have  sett  my  hand 
and  seale  April  16,  1650. 
Witness  the  mark  x   of  Great  Tom,  Indian. 

John  bartlet, 

William  titcomb. 

This  is  a  true  coppy  of  a  deed,  as  is  abovesayd,  taken  from  the 
originall.  Attest  Anthoxv   Somerbv. 

Clerk  of  Neivbii>y. 

The  land  con\eyed  by  the  above  deed  remained  in  the 
possession  of  the  proprietors  of  the  town  of  Newbury,  with 
other  common  and  undivided  lands,  until  the  great  division 


348  OULD   NEWBURY 

in  1686.  At  llKit  date  the  "freehold  lots,"  extendin*;-  in 
two  great  di\isions  on  each  side  of  the  l^radford  road,  from 
John  I'jiiery's  farm  at  Artichoke  River  to  John  Gerrish's 
farm  at  the  Bradford  (now  Groveland)  line,  were  assigned  to 
the  freeholders  ;  while  a  central  strip  on  the  southeast  side 
of  the  south  way,  or  middle  road  as  it  is  now  called,  was 
surveyed  and  classified,  in  eight  great  divisions,  under  the 
name  of  "  rate  lots."  The  first  division  extended  from  the 
Bradford  line  to  the  Crane  Neck  Hill  road.  The  second  and 
third  occupied  the  space  between  the  Crane  Neck  Hill  road 
and  the  Ilsley  Hill  road.  The  fourth  and  fifth  were  bounded 
by  the  Ilsley  Hill  road  and  the  road  back  of  Indian  Hill, 
formerly  known  as  Merrill's  lane.  The  sixth  division  in- 
cluded the  land  between  Merrill's  lane  and  the  lane  leading 
to  Indian  Hill. 

The  last  lot  in  the  sixth  di\ision  was  assigned  to  Joseph 
Downer.  On  the  map  of  the  West  Parish  of  Newbur)',  pub- 
lished in  1729,  the  road  leading  to  Indian  Hill  is  called 
Downer's  lane;  and  house  No.  146,  next  to  the  line  that 
separates  the  East  from  the  West  Parish,  was  owned  and 
occupied  at  that  date  by  Andrew  Downer.  The  adjoining 
estate,  No.  147,  was  the  property  of  Stephen  Sayor,  whose 
descendants  still  reside  there. 

Other  lots  on  Downer's  lane  were  assigned  to  John  Web- 
ster, Jr.,  Dr.  John  Dole,  Jonathan  Clarke,  Hugh  Pike,  Moses 
Pilsbury,  Matthew  Pettingell,  William  Noyes,  John  Moody, 
Stephen  Greenleaf,  Jr.,  Thomas  P'ollansby,  lulward  Poore, 
and  others.  Most  of  these  lot  holders,  having  no  desire  to 
locate  in  West  Newbury,  sold  their  possessions  in  that 
locality  ;  and  the  land  assigned  to  several  of  them  in  the 
great  di\ision  of  1686  was,  by  exchange  and  by  purchase, 
ultimately  made  a  jxirt  of  the  estate  now  known  as  Indian 
Hill  1^'arm. 

On  the  map  of  the  W'est  Parish,  i)re\i<)usl)'  referred  to,  the 
house  of  Samuel  Poore^,  on  Downer's  lane,  numbered  148,  is 
correctly  designated.  How  long  before  the  jniblication  of 
this  map    Samuel    Poore"^   resided   there    is   uncertain. 

His    grandfather,    Samuel     Pooie',    was    one    of    the    earlv 


INDIAN  HIIL  349 

settlers  of  Newbury.  He  bought  a  house  and  land  of 
Tristram  Coffin  April  15,  1652,  bounded  on  the  northwest  by 
land  that  he  had  previously  bought  of  Richard  Kent  ;  but  the 
description  is  otherwise  so  vague  and  indefinite  that  it  is 
impossible  to  say  just  where  the  land  was  located.  He  died 
Dec.  31,  1683. 

Samuel  Poore^,  was  born  Oct.  14,  1653,  and  married  to 
Rachel  Bailey  Feb.  16,  1679-80.  He  owned  the  house  and 
land  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Merrimack  River,  afterward 
sold  to  Samuel  Moggaridge  and  occupied  as  a  ship-yard. 
The  narrow  way,  now  Merrimack  court,  was  formerly  known 
as  Poore's  lane,  and  is  so  designated  in  deeds  written  in 
the  last  century.  He  sold  March  9,  1707-8,  to  his  son, 
Samuel  Poore-'^,  two  acres  of  land  in  Newbury,  bounded  on 
the  west  by  land  belonging  to  his  son  SamueF,  on  the  south- 
east by  a  lane  or  highway  leading  to  the  Merrimack  River, 
northerly  on  land  of  Job  Pillsbury,  and  northeast  on  land 
belonging  to  the  grantor  (book  32,  page  177).  He  died 
Nov.  29,  1727.  His  will,  dated  Jan.  20,  1725-6,  and  proved 
Jan.  I,  1727-8,  gave  all  his  real  estate  and  most  of  his 
personal  estate,  excepting  a  few  small  legacies,  to  his  wife 
Rachel.  On  the  same  day  that  the  will  was  proved,  Samuel 
Poore^,  Sarah,  widow  of  Joseph  Brown,  Timothy  and  Eleanor 
Putnam,  Thomas  and  Rebecca  Smith,  conveyed  "  to  our 
mother,  Rachel  Poore,  widow  of  our  father,  Samuel  Poore^, 
our  interest  in  our  father's  estate,  real  and  personal  "  (book 
54,  page  117). 

Sept.  II,  1728,  Rachel  Poore,  widow,  sold  to  Samuel  Mog- 
garidge a  portion  of  this  real  estate  (book  54,  page  140)  ;  and 
P'eb.  28,  1732-3,  she  sold  to  Samuel  Moggaridge  about 
ninety  rods  additional,  bounded  easterly  on  a  way  leading 
from  Poore's  lane  to  the  river,  "  it  being  all  my  land  on  the 
northwest  side  of  said  way"  (book  63,  page  4). 

Samuel  Poore^,  son  of  SamueP  and  Rachel  Poore,  was  born 
June  23,  1683.  He  married  Hannah,  daughter  of  Benjamin 
Morse,  in  September,  1705  ;  and  lived  for  several  years  with 
his  father  in  the  old  homestead    near   the  Merrimack   River. 


350  OULD   NKWBUKY 

March  9,  1707-8,  he  bougiit,  as  prcxiously  stated,  two  acres 
of  land  belon<;ing;  to  that  estate.  June  i,  1709,  he  bought  of 
Joseph  Goodrich  a  thirty-acre  rate  lot  in  Xe\vbur\-,  bounded 
northerly  by  land  of  Deacon  Cutting  Noyes,  southerly  by 
land  of  Corporal  Stephen  Sawyer,  westerly  and  easterly  by 
highways  (book  32,  page  185). 

This  "rate  lot"  was  evidently  the  first  land  i)urchased  by 
Samuel  Poore'^  in  the  vicinity  of  Indian  Hill.  Other  lots  were 
added  at  a  later  date,  and  now  constitute  what  is  known  as 
Indian  Hill  Farm.  The  house  formerly  standing  on  this  lot 
was  probably  erected  during  the  year  1709  or  1710;  and 
Samuel  Poore"'^  and  his  family  were  certainly  living  there  when 
the  maj)  of  the  West  Parish  was  published  in  1 729.  Some 
years  later  the  house  was  struck  by  lightning  and  completely 
destroyed.  A  new  dwelling  was  erected  on  the  same  site, 
and  Samuel  I^oore-^  continued  to  reside  there  until  his  death, 
in  1769.  His  will,  dated  Dec.  19,  1768,  and  proved  Aug. 
28,  1769,  after  making  some  small  bequests,  gave  the  rest 
and  residue  of  his  estate,  including  the  farm  upon  which  he 
then  lived,  to  his  son  Benjamin-*. 

Benjamin  Poore*,  the  son,  was  born  at  Indian  Hill  Sept.  5, 
1723,  married  Judith,  daughter  of  Daniel  and  Judith  Noyes, 
in  February,  1 749,  and  settled  on  the  farm  with  his  father. 
He  died  intestate  March  18,  1817,  aged  ninety-three  years 
and  six  months.  Two  daughters,  Judith  and  Abigail  Poore, 
and  one  son,  Daniel  Noyes  Poore^  inherited  the  house  and 
farm.  The  daughters  were  never  married,  and  resided  on 
the  place  until  their  decease.  Daniel  Noyes  Poore"  was  born 
July  16,  1758,  graduated  at  Harvard  College  in  1777,  and 
two  years  later  was  a  practising  physician  in  West  Newbury. 
He  li\-ed  with  his  sisters  on  the  farm  until  his  marriage,  Jul}" 
3,  1796,  to  Lydia,  only  child  of  John  and  Mary  (Little) 
Merrill.  He  then  bought  a  dwelling-house  with  land  under 
and  adjoining  the  same  on  the  Bradford  road  in  West  New- 
bur}',  where  he  resided  until  his  death,  which  occurred 
Jan.    23,    1837. 

His  eldest  son,  l^enjamin'',  boi'n  Sej^t.  23,  1797,  mari"ied 
Mar}-    I'erley,    daughter     of     Allen    and    Mar}-    (Burroughs) 


IXDIAX  HILL  351 

Dodge,  Nov.  29,  18 19.  He  lived  for  a  few  years  in  New- 
buryport,  where  his  eldest  child,  Ben  :  Perley  Poores  was  born 
Nov.  2,  1820,  and  afterward  removed  to  New  York  City. 

March  23,  1825,  the  will  of  Daniel  Noyes  Poore^  (proved 
ten  or  twelve  years  later),  was  duly  signed  and  executed, 
giving  to  his  grandson,  Ben  :  Perley  Poore',  one  third  part 
of  Indian  Hill  P^arm  in  West  Newbury,  with  all  the  build- 
ings thereon,  containing  about  sixty  acres  of  mowing  and 
tillage  land,  sixty  acres  of  pasture  land,  and  about  seven 
acres  of  marsh  land.  On  the  same  day  Abigail  Poore  and 
Judith  Poore,  in  separate  wills,  each  gave  to  Ben:  Perley 
Poore',  "  son  of  my  nephew,  Benjamin  Poore,"  one  third  part 
of  the  same  estate. 

Many  years  previous  to  this  date  another  house  (the  third 
one  at  Indian  Hill)  was  erected  for  the  use  of  the  family  ; 
and  the  old  unoccupied  house  was  used  for  the  storage  of 
hay,  grain,  fruit,  and  vegetables. 

In  1832,  Benjamin  Poore'^  visited  PLngland  and  Scotland 
with  his  son,  Benjamin  Perley  Poore',  then  a  young  lad. 
After  his  return  he  decided  to  repair  the  old  house,  and  make 
it  an  interesting  and  attractive  dwelling-place  for  himself  and 
family.  He  built  projections  and  wings  on  either  side,  added 
a  picturesque  front  porch,  and  provided  quaint-looking  win- 
dows, with  diamond-shaped  panes,  similar  in  style  and  appear- 
ance to  those  seen  in  England  a  century  ago.  When  the 
alterations  and  improvements  were  completed,  he  removed 
his  family  to  the  new  apartments  provided  for  them.  The 
house  made  vacant  by  their  removal  was  then  taken  down, 
and  the  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same  was  graded  and 
converted  into  a  lawn. 

Benjamin  Poore^  continued  to  reside  at  the  farm  until  the 
year  1 849,  when  the  discovery  of  gold  in  California  induced 
him  to  visit  the  Pacific  coast,  where  his  wife  and  daughters 
joined  him  a  year  or  two  later.  He  afterward  went  to  Hong 
Kong  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  a  line  of  steamers 
between  that  port  and  San  Francisco.  The  vessel  in  which 
he  sailed,  on  the  homeward  voyage,  was  wrecked  in  the  China 
Sea,  and  he  was  drowned  July  23,  1853. 


BEN:     PERLEY    POORE. 


IXDIAX  HILL  353 

Ben :  Perley  Poore",  after  his  return  from  New  York, 
resided,  with  his  father,  mother,  and  sisters,  at  Indian  Hill 
and  attended  school  at  Dummer  Academy.  Before  he  was 
twenty-one  years  of  age  he  was  the  editor  and  publisher  of  a 
newspaper  in  Athens,  Ga.  In  1841,  he  went  to  Brussels  as 
an  attache  of  the  American  legation,  and  remained  there 
until  1844,  when  he  was  authorized  by  the  Massachusetts 
legislature  to  procure  copies  of  all  the  important  documents 
relating  to  the  American  Revolution  on  file  in  the  archives 
of  the  French  government.  Ten  large  volumes  of  valuable 
manuscript  papers  and  two  volumes  of  maps  were  sent  to  the 
state  house  in  Boston  as  the  result  of  his  labors  and  inves- 
tigations in  Paris.  When  the  work  was  accomplished,  he 
returned  home,  and  soon  after  was  engaged  as  Washington 
correspondent  of  the  Boston  Atlas.  He  married,  June  12, 
1849,  Virginia,  daughter  of  Francis  and  Mary  (Thompson) 
Dodge,  of  Georgetown,  D.  C.  He  was  for  a  short  time  editor 
of  the  Boston  Bee,  and  afterward  editor  and  publisher  of  the 
American  Sentinel.  In  1854,  he  was  employed  as  Washing- 
ton correspondent  of  the  Boston  Journal,  which  position  he 
held  for  more  than  twenty  years.  At  the  same  time  he  was 
clerk  of  the  senate  committee  on  printing,  and  also  clerk 
of  the  committee  on  foreign  relations.  He  had  a  natural 
love  for  military  life,  and  devoted  much  time  and  attention  to 
the  study  of  military  tactics.  At  the  beginning  of  the  Civil 
War,  in  1861,  he  was  appointed  major,  and  afterward  lieuten- 
ant-colonel, of  the  Sixth  Massachusetts  Regiment.  Under 
the  command  of  General  Benjamin  F.  Butler  this  regiment 
rendered  important  service  in  keeping  the  way  open  from 
New  York  and  Philadelphia,  through  Maryland,  to  Washing- 
ton, D.  C.  In  the  month  of  December  following.  Major 
Poore  returned  to  his  duties  at  the  capital.  During  the  next 
ten  years  he  published,  in  several  volumes,  compilations  of 
the  Federal  and  State  charters,  the  various  treaties  nego- 
tiated by  the  United  States,  and  other  papers  of  historical 
value.  In  1882,  he  sent  to  the  press  the  "Life  of  General 
Burnside,"  and  in  1886  he  published  his  "Reminiscences  of 
Sixty  Years  in  the  National  Metropolis." 


INDIAN  HILL  355 

His  daughter,  Alice  Poore'^,  born  at  Indian  Hill  Aug.  27, 
1854,  married  Frederick  Strong  Moseley,  of  Newburyport, 
Sept.  29,  1880.  She  died  at  Indian  Hill  July  12,  1883, 
leaving  one  son,  Ben  :  Perley  Poore  Moseley,  born  at  Indian 
Hill  Aug.  20,  1 88 1. 

Ben  :  Perley  Poore'  died  in  Washington,  D.  C,  May  30, 
1887,  and  was  buried  in  West  Newbury,  near  his  own  home 
and  the  home  of  his  ancestors.  His  will,  dated  Oct.  29, 
1884,  and  proved  July  5,  1887,  placed  the  house  and  farm 
in  trust  for  the  use  and  benefit  of  his  wife,  Virginia  Dodge 
Poore,  during  her  life,  and  at  her  decease  provided  for  the 
transfer  of  the  property,  on  certain  specified  conditions,  to 
his  grandson,  Ben  :  Perley  Poore  Moseley.  These  conditions 
were  not  complied  with  ;  but  early  in  the  year  1 894  a  deed, 
signed  by  Mrs.  Poore  and  other  legatees  under  the  will,  con- 
veyed the  estate  to  P^-ederick  Strong  Moseley,  who  is  now 
the  sole  owner  of  Indian   Hill   P^arm. 

Mrs.  Virginia  Dodge  Poore  died  in  Washington,  D.  C, 
March  10,  1894,  and  was  buried  in  West  Newbury,  Mass., 
by  the  side  of  her  husband   and   daughters. 

The  house,  repaired  and  remodeled  by  Benjamin  Poore''  in 
1832,  was  originally  a  plain  wooden  structure  with  a  heavy 
oak  frame,  low  ceilings,  and  a  steep  pointed  roof,  without 
any  special  architectural  beauty  ;  but  stone  towers  and  turrets 
have  been  added  from  time  to  time  until  it  is  now  one  of  the 
most  notable  and  picturesque  residences  in  New  England. 
The  main  hall  opens  upon  a  porch,  or  veranda,  overrun 
with  honeysuckle,  clematis,  and  other  climbing  vines.  An- 
cestral portraits,  ancient  armor,  swords,  battle-axes,  shields, 
helmets,  and  spears  hang  upon  the  walls.  On  one  side  are 
cheerful  and  attractive  parlors.  On  the  other  is  the  dining- 
room,  where  distinguished  guests,  prominent  in  social  and 
political  life,  have  been  entertained.  The  continental  rooms, 
in  the  rear  of  the  hall,  fitted  and  furnished  with  cooking- 
utensils  and  household  furniture  in  common  use  two  cen- 
turies ago,  are  surprisingly  realistic  and  unique.  Constructed 
from    materials    that   once  formed    a    part    of    some    of    the 


356  OULD    NEWBURY 

famous  historic  building's  of  Massachusetts, —  a  staircase 
from  the  Tracy  house,  Newburyport,  wainscoting  from  the 
residence  of  Governor  Hancock,  an  elaborate  mantelpiece 
from  the  old  Province  House,  Boston, —  they  now  serve  as 
an  appropriate  repository  for  a  large  collection  of  interest- 
ing relics  and  souvenirs.  In  one  room,  old-fashioned  fire- 
arms, powder-horns,  cutlasses,  bows  and  arrows,  and  Indian 
relics  of  every  description  are  displayed ;  while  in  other 
apartments  rich  and  rare  specimens  of  antique  furniture, 
pewter  ware  and  old  china,  gathered  from  famous  New  Eng- 
land homes,  reveal  to  the  student  of  history  a  glimpse  of 
the  comforts  and  luxuries  of  the  old  colonial  days. 


THE  SAWYER  HOUSE. 


In  outward  appearance  this  old  house  has  not  been  mate- 
rially changed  or  modified  for  more  than  a  century.  Altera- 
tions and  improvements  have  not  marred  its  proportions  or 
destroyed  its  individuality.  It  has  been  permitted  to  grow 
old,  gracefully  and  modestly,  without  effort  to  adapt  it  to 
the  wants  of  modern  civilization.  It  is  one  of  the  best  speci- 
mens of  early  New  England  architecture  to  be  found  in  this 
vicinity.  It  stands  facing  the  south,  with  a  low,  slanting 
roof  and  quaint  windows  in  the  rear  looking  out  upon  the 
road  that  leads  from  "the  plains,"  in  Newburyport,  to  Cur- 
zon's  mills  at  the  mouth  of  the  Artichoke  River.  It  is  now 
unoccupied  and  sadly  out  of  repair. 

It  is  impossible  to  say  with  certainty  just  when  this  house 
was  built,  but  evidently  it  was  in  existence  previous  to  1696  ; 
for  Zachariah  Ayer  sold  to  Shubael  Long  Oct.  24,  1696, 
seven  acres  of  land  in  Newbury,  with  house,  barn,  etc., 
thereon,  bounded  on  the  north  by  the  way  to  Stephen 
Emery's  mill,  on  the  south  by  land  he  had  previously  sold  to 
Thomas  Eollansbee,  and  on  the  east  and  west  by  common  or 
undivided  land.  This  property  was  bought  by  Zachariah 
Ayer  of  John  Kent  ;  but  no  record  of  that  deed  can  be  found, 
and  the  date  of  transfer  is  therefore  uncertain  (Essex  Regis- 
try of  Deeds,  book  12,  page  86). 

July  9,  1707,  Shubael  Long,  of  Newbury,  sold  to  Josiah 
Sawyer,  of  Newbury,  seven  acres  of  land  in  Newbury,  with 
buildings  thereon,  bounded  on  the  north  by  road  to  the  mill, 
on  the  south  by  land  of  John  Sawyer,  and  on  the  east  and 
west  by  common  or  undivided  land   (book  26,  page  190). 

On  the  map  of  the  West  Parish  of  Newbury,  drawn  by 
John  Brown  and  dated  Sept.  15,  1729,  the  house  described  in 


\Jgmm 

■1 

h 

:i 

1 

1 

f 

'A'.dl:'; 

^  ' 

m 

^ 

i> 

THE   SAWYER   HOUSE  359 

the  above  conveyance  is  marked  No.  23  ;  and  in  the  list  of 
owners,  on  the  margin  of  the  map,  the  name  of  Josiah  Sawyer 
appears  opposite  that  number.  He  owned  and  occupied  the 
house  for  nearly  half  a  century,  and  bought  other  land  in  that 
vicinity  (book  48,  page  59). 

William  Sawyer,  who  was  the  first  of  that  name  to  settle 
in  Newbury,  was  his  paternal  ancestor  ;  and  Samuel,  son  of 
William  and  Ruth  Sawyer,  born  Nov.  22,  1646,  was  his 
father.  Samuel  Sawyer  married,  March  13,  1671,  Mary, 
daughter  of  John  Emery.  They  had  several  children,  among 
them  Josiah,  born  January  20,  1681.  Josiah  Sawyer  married, 
Jan.  22,  1708,  Tirzah,  daughter  of  Thomas  Bartlett.  They 
had  the  following  named  children  :  — 

Josiah,  born  April  12.  1709. 
Moses,  born  Feb.  21,  171 1. 
Tirza,  born  Nov.  7,  1713- 
Israel,  born  Oct.  9,  171 7. 
Gideon,  born  Dec.  15,  1719- 
James,  born  May  12,  1722. 

The  will  of  Josiah  Sawyer,  dated  June  25,  1755,  and 
proved  May  3,  1756,  mentions  sons  Josiah  and  Gideon,  and 
makes  son  Moses  executor  and  residuary  devisee  of  the  estate. 
The  will  also  mentions  "daughter  Tirza,  wife  of  Reuben 
French,  of  Salisbury."  The  other  children  were  probably 
not  living  at  that  date. 

Moses  Sawyer,  residuary  devisee  under  the  will  of  his 
father,  retained  possession  of  the  homestead  until  his  death. 
In  the  settlement  of  his  estate  his  widow,  Hannah  Sawyer, 
was  appointed  administratrix  Oct.  26,  1778;  and  two  years 
later  (in  17S0)  one-half  of  the  house,  with  about  eighteen 
acres  of  land  "  on  the  road  to  Bagley's  Mill,"  was  assigned  to 
Hannah  Sawyer  for  dower,  and  the  other  half  of  the  house 
was  set  off  to  her  son,  Joseph  Sawyer.  In  1802,  the  dower 
assigned  to  the  widow  Hannah  Sawyer  was  divided  ;  and  that 
portion  of  the  house  and  land  belonging  to  her  was  awarded 
to  her  son  Joseph,  who  then  became  owner  of  the  entire 
estate,  which  is  described  in  the  records  at  that  date  as 
"  bounded  on  the  north  by  the  road  to  Peck's  Mill." 


360  OULD   NEWBURY 

Joseph  Sawyer  died  April  22,  I  83  I.  His  will,  dated  Oct. 
26,  1826,  and  jM'oved  the  last  Tuesday  in  June,  1831,  gave 
to  his  wife  Nancy  the  use  of  all  his  real  estate  during  her 
life,  and  at  her  decease  two-thirds  of  the  property  to  his 
brother,  Thomas  Sawyer,  and  one-third  to  his  sister,  Hannah 
Little,  for  her  life,  and  after  her  death  to  her  daughters, 
Hannah  Little,  Judith  Little,  Caroline  Little,  and  Harriet 
Little.  Nancy  Sawyer  was  appointed  executrix  of  her  hus- 
band's will,  and  under  license  from  the  court  sold,  July  31, 
1832,  the  house  and  land  to  William  Cutter  Crockett  (book 
304,  page  112);  and  on  the  same  day  the  property  was  recon- 
veyed  to  her.  She  married,  Nov.  6,  1832,  Timothy  Pender- 
gast,  and  removed  to  New  Market,  N.  H. 

June  26,  1839,  Thomas  Sawyer,  of  Corinth,  \X.,  sold  to 
Hannah  Little,  of  Newbury,  all  his  right  and  interest  in  the 
property  (book  960,  page  33);  and  March  30,  1872,  Nancy 
Pendergast,  of  New  Market,  N.  H.,  sold  her  right  and  inter- 
est to  Richard  Roberts,  of  Newbury  (book  898,  page  239). 

May  12,  1873,  Richard  Roberts  conveyed  the  property  to 
Dennis  Donahue  (book  898,  page  239). 

July  24,  1877,  Nathaniel  Pierce,  administrator  of  the  estate 
of  Hannah  Little,  released  to  Dennis  Donahue  all  claim  upon 
the  land  and  buildings  (book  983,  page  241). 

Sept.  13,  1892,  Dennis  Donahue  sold  the  property  to 
Daniel   M.    Davis   (book    1356,   page   470). 

Dec.  5,  1892,  Daniel  M.  Davis  conveyed  to  Frederick  S. 
Moseley  the  house  and  land  above  described  (book  1363, 
page  279). 

When  one-half  this  house,  the  eastern  barn,  one-half  of  the 
well,  and  about  eighteen  acres  of  land  were  set  off  to  Hannah 
Sawyer,  widow  of  Moses  Sawyer,  and  the  other  half  of  the 
house  and  well,  with  the  remainder  of  the  land  and  the  barn 
and  buildings  thereon,  were  assigned  tt)  her  son,  Josej^h 
Sawyer,  it  became  necessary  to  add  two  or  three  rooms  to 
the  house,  with  a  se])arate  cellar,  for  the  acconnnodation  of 
the   occupants.      The    old    chinine}'    was    made   to   ser\e   two 


THE    SAWYER    HOUSE  361 

families  by  the  addition  of  a  new  flue  on  the  northerly  side, 
extending  frt)m  the  cellar  to  the  top  of  the  main  chimney, 
as  shown  in  the  half-tone  print  accompanying  this  sketch. 
A  smaller  but  quite  substantial  chimney  was  also  provided 
for  the  new  rooms  on  the  extreme  westerly  end. 

The  style  and  finish  of  the  house  is  exceedingly  plain 
and  simple.  The  interior  is  arranged  with  an  eye  to  com- 
fort as  well  as  convenience,  with  many  quaint  old  closets 
and  cupboards  in  odd,  out-of-the-way  corners.  Heavy  beams, 
unpainted  and  brown  with  age,  project  from  the  walls  and 
ceilings  ;  and  large,  open  fireplaces  seem  abundantly  able  to 
light  and  heat  the  rude  and  scantily  furnished  rooms. 

But  the  most  picturesque  and  attractive  feature  of  this  old 
house  is  the  low,  slanting  roof,  with  rafters  on  the  northerly 
side  extending  from  the  ridge  pole  almost  to  the  ground. 
Houses  similar  in  style  of  architecture  and  workmanship  were 
not  uncommon  in  New  England  a  century  ago,  but  they 
are  rapidly  disappearing.  This  one,  especially  noticeable  for 
its  distinctive  peculiarities  and  typical  character,  is  worthy  of 
a  place  among  the  notable  houses  of  "  Ould  Newbury." 


THE   BURYING  GROUND  AT  SAWYER'S  HILL. 


The  history  of  this  old  buryins,^  ground  is  somewhat  vague 
and  uncertain.  It  is  intimately  associated  with  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  second  church  in  Newbury,  now  the  first  in  West 
Newbury.  The  incidents  of  the  long  struggle  that  finally 
culminated  in  the  building  of  a  new  meeting-house  at  the 
west  end  of  the  town  are  interesting  and  suggestive. 

It  appears  that  early  in  1685  a  petition  was  presented  to 
the  inhabitants  of  Newbury,  asking  that  a  more  convenient 
place  of  worship  may  be  provided  for  the  use  of  those  living 
at  a  great  distance  from  the  old  meeting-house.  The  reply 
to  this  petition  was  not  satisfactory  ;  and  after  some  delay 
a  building  suitable  for  the  purpose  was  erected  by  sixteen 
persons,  at  their  own  expense,  in  the  vicinity  of  "the  plains." 
In  an  old  memorandum  book,  Richard  Bartlett  states  that 
"he  bought  boards  and  shingles  and  nails  for  the  meeting- 
house," under  the  date  16S9;  and  it  is  probable  that  the 
building  was  erected  during  that  year.  March  11,  1690,  a 
committee,  consisting  of  fifteen  persons  from  the  west  end, 
were  present  at  a  meeting  of  the  town,  and  made  a  strong 
appeal  for  aid  and  assistance,  saying,  "It  is  well  known  how 
far  we  have  proceeded  as  to  a  meeting-house,"  and  proposing 
that  two  ministers  should  be  employed  at  the  public  expense, 
one  to  preach  at  the  east  end  of  the  town,  and  the  other  at 
the  west  end ;  or,  if  the  majority  should  be  unwilling  to 
consent  to  this  plan,  that  liberty  be  given  the  west  end 
people   to    employ   a   minister   at   their   own    charge. 

In  thfe  absence  of  any  definite  vote  upon  this  question, 
an  effort  was  made  in  1691  to  engage  the  services  of  Mr. 
Edward  Thompson  as  minister  at  the  plains  by  a  number  of 
persons  living  in  that  neighborhood.      The  town  objected,  and 


364  OULD   NEWBURY 

on  tlic  I4tli  of  Jul)-  "(lid  !))•  vote  nKinifcst  their  dislike 
aj;"ainst  it,  or  ai;ainst  any  other  minister  whom  the)'  should 
call,  until  ye  church  and  towne  are  a_!j;reed  upon  it,  looking 
upon  such  a  thing  to  be  an  intrusion  ujjon  ye  church  and 
towne." 

Anxious  to  secure  for  themsel\-es  and  their  families  the 
privileges  of  religious  worship,  and  realizing  that  some  de- 
cided stej)  must  be  taken  to  accomplish  that  result,  several 
of  the  inhabitants  of  the  west  end  of  the  town  petitioned  the 
General  Court  "to  be  established  a  people  by  themselves 
for  the  maintenance  of  the  ministry  among  them."  To  this 
petition  the  town  made  serious  objection,  and  appointed  a 
committee  to  prepare  an  answer  remonstrating  against  the 
proposed   division. 

During  the  year  1692,  the  struggle  between  the  two  fac- 
tions continued  unabated,  each  side  asserting  its  rights  and 
striving  to  maintain  its  position.  May  12,  1693,  the  "towne 
voted  that  Mr.  John  Clarke  be  called  to  assist  Mr.  Richard- 
son in  the  work  of  the  ministry  at  the  west  end  of  the 
towne,  to  preach  to  them  one  )'ear  in  order  to  farther 
settlement,  and  also  to  keep  a  grammar  schoole."  In  a 
petition  to  the  General  Court,  dated  May  31,  1693,  the 
selectmen  of  Newbury  state  that  a  difference  exists  "  be- 
tween the  people  of  Newbury  and  those  in  the  west  end  of 
the  town  about  calling  a  minister  ;  that  the  west  end  people 
had  called  Mr.  Edward  Thompson  to  preach  to  them  without 
accjuainting  the  minister,  church,  or  towne  with  their  pro- 
ceedings in  that  affair,  the  which  when  our  town  did  under- 
stand that  they  were  about  to  bring  him  into  town,  the  town 
being  met  to  consider  of  it  by  theii'  xote  did  declare  that 
they  were  against  his  coming,  or  any  other  until  the  church 
and  towne  were  agreed.  Yet  they  ]X'rsisted  in  their  design, 
and  brought  him  in,  and  when  he  was  come  in  our  minister 
warned  him  to  forbear  preaching  till  the  chui"ch  and  town 
were  agreed  ;  }et  he  j^resumed  to  set  up  a  lecture,  and 
preach  without  any  allowance  of  ministers,  church,  or  town, 
whi(-h  when  the  church  did  understand  lhe\'  did  call  him  to 
account,  and  declaix'd  their  dislike  of  his  irregulai'  pi-oceetling. 


BURYING    GROUND   AT  SAWYER'S   HILL  365 

Yet  he  hath  persisted  in  these  irregularities  to  the  great  dis- 
turbance of  our  peace,  and  since  upon  the  request  of  severall 
of  the  inhabitants  of  the  west  end  of  our  towne,  called 
another  minister,  Mr.  John  Clark,  who  hath  accepted  of  the 
call  ;  and  yet  there  are  severall  who  refuse  to  accept  of  him, 
pretending  they  are  bound  to  said  Thompson,  which  agree- 
ment they  made  when  the  rest  of  their  neighbors  were  about 
to  make  application  to  the  town,  which  was  since  the  late  law 
was  made  to  direct  the  town  to  call  the  minister." 

In  reply  to  this  petition  a  committee  of  west  end  people 
appeal  to  the  governor  and  council  iox  help,  and  say  :  — 

We  have  been  endeavoring  above  these  five  years  to  have  the  public 
worship  of  God  established  among  us  on  the  Lord's  day  for  reasons 
such  as  these.  The  bulk  of  us  live  four  miles  from  the  ould  meeting 
house  ;  some,  six  or  seven,  (^ur  number  is  above  three  hundred.  Few 
of  us  have  horses ;  and,  if  we  could  get  down  to  the  ould  meeting  house, 
it  is  impossible  it  should  receive  vis  with  them,  so  that  many  (would)  lay 
out  of  doors,  the  house  is  so  little.  Some  of  us  have  groaned  under  this 
burden  this  thirty  years,  some  grown  old,  some  sickly,  and  although  we 
were  favored  with  the  liberty  granted  by  King  James  the  Second,  and 
had  erected  an  house  to  the  worship  of  God  on  our  own  cost  and  charge, 
and  acquainted  the  two  next  justices  with  our  intent  before  we  built  the 
said  house.  A  committee  of  five  were  appointed  to  come  on  the  place ; 
but  before  they  had  finished  their  work  the  governor  arrived,  which 
caused  them  to  desist.  We  complained  to  the  governor,  who  granted 
us  protection  from  paying  to  the  ould  meeting  house,  then  counter- 
manded it.  The  town  had  a  meeting, —  they  intend  to  delude  us  by 
granting  the  help  of  a  schoolmaster  at  sometimes  for  one  yeare.  We 
believe  our  neighbors  would  be  glad  to  see  us  quite  tired  out.  We  beg 
the  honorable  court  to  establish  peace  among  us  and  a  rational  dividing 
line. 

Rev.  John  Clark  having  declined  the  call  to  preach  at  the 
west  end,  the  town  invited  Rev.  Christopher  Toppan  to  ac- 
cept the  position  for  one  year.  This  arrangement,  however, 
was  not  satisfactory  ;  and  Sept.  5,  1694,  a  committee,  consist- 
ing of  Joshua  Brown,  John  Ordway,  and  Samuel  Bartlett, 
petitioned  the  General  Court  in  behalf  of  the  company  that 
had  erected  a  meeting-house  at  their  own  expense,  and 
supplied    themselves    with    a    minister,    requesting    the    hon- 


366  OULD   NEWBURY 

orable  court  "  to  take  some  effectual  care  for  the  relief  of  the 
petitioners  and  for  the  quiet  of  the  whole  town,  the  peace 
whereof  is  now  so  dani;"er()usl)-  interrupted." 

I'^indin*;"  it  impossible  to  continue  tlie  strui^gle  with  any 
prosj^ect  of  success,  the  freemen  of  the  town  came  together, 
and  wisely  concluded  to  accept  the  ine\itable.  Dec.  21, 
1694,  a  connnittce  of  five  was  appointed  "to  draw  up  articles 
and  proposals  in  order  to  setting  off  part  of  the  west  end  of 
the  towne  "  as  a  separate  parish  ;  and  Jan.  i,  1695,  the  town 
voted  "that  ri}ie  Stave  Hill,  near  Daniel  Jaques'  house,  shall 
be  the  place  for  the  meeting  house,  and  those  that  live 
nearest  to  that  place  shall  pay  to  the  ministry  there,  and 
those  that  \\\c  nearest  to  the  old  meeting  house  shall  pay 
there,  the  inhabitants  at  the  west  end  to  choose  a  minister 
for  themselves,  only  Mr.  'rhom}«on  excepted.  The  meeting 
house  to  stand  where  it  do  until  the  major  part  of  them  see 
cause  to  remove  it."  In  December  of  the  same  year  the 
town,  at  the  request  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  west  end, 
"  trranted  them  five  acres  of  land  on  the  east  side  of  Arti- 
choke  ri\'er  for  a  pasture  for  the  ministr)'  and  one  acre  of 
land  near  the  west  meeting  house,  and  when  the  major  part 
shall  see  cause  to  remove  the  said  meeting  house,  the  land 
shall  be  at  the  disposal  of  the  towne  to  procure  land  for  the 
ministry,  near  the  wx^st  meeting  house,  when  removed." 

Apparently,  the  controversy  was  ended.  Quiet  was  re- 
stored, and  for  ten  or  fifteen  years  at  least  the  peace  of  the 
community  was  undisturbed.  The  quarrels  and  dissensions 
that  came  at  a  later  date,  with  the  incidents  that  led  to  the 
building  of  Queen  Anne's  Cha]K'l,  are  briell)'  described  in  the 
following  sketch. 

In  the  absence  of  any  definite  action  on  the  part  of  the 
town  to  establish  a  bur\'ing  gi'ound  at  the  west  end.  it  is 
reasonable  to  su])pose  tliat  the  new  })arish  would  take  such 
steps  as  might  be  necessar)-  to  su])pl}'  tlie  deficienc)-.  In  the 
grant  of  land  fioni  the  town  of  Newbui")',  dated  I  )ec.  iS. 
1695,  there  is  "one  acre  near  tlie  west  meeting  lionse  "  that 
the   i)arish   ma)'   ha\'e  approi)rialed    and   used   lor   burial   pur- 


BrRYIiVG    GROUXD   AT  SAWYER'S  HILL  367 

poses,  and  afterward   enclosed   with   a  suitable  stone   wall   in 
compliance  with  the  following  \otes  :  — 

March  25.  1707-N.  the  parisli  voted  y'  y  l)urving  place  of  al)out  an 
acre  of  land  shall  be  fenced  in  with  a  stone  wall,  and  allso  a  sufficient 
gate. 

March  22.  1 70S-9,  Voted  that  it  should  be  left  to  the  discretion  of 
the  Comm'''  to  fence  in  the  burying  place  either  with  board  fence  or 
stone  wall. 

These  votes,  taken  from  the  records  of  the  West  Parish 
church,  now  the  First  Parish  of  West  Newbury,  clearly  indi- 
cate that  a  burial  place,  under  the  control  of  the  parish,  was 
in  existence  at  that  date  ;  and  tradition  asserts  that  it  was 
then,  and  has  been  ever  since,  known  as  the  Sawyer  Hill 
burying  ground.  At  the  present  time  there  is  a  substantial 
stone  wall  about  the  place,  with  two  large  gates  for  the  con- 
venience of  those  who  desire  to  enter  the  enclosure.  It  is 
within  the  limits  of  what  is  now  the  city  of  Newburyport, 
nearl)'  three  miles  away  from  the  centre  of  population,  on  the 
road  leading  to  Curzon's  mill.  In  this  quiet  and  retired  sj:)ot 
are  buried  Rev.  Moses  Hale,  one  of  the  first  pastors  of  the 
W^est  Parish  church,  Colonel  Moses  Little,  an  officer  in  the 
Revolutionary  army,  and  also  representatives  of  the  Emery, 
Sawyer,  Poore,  Moody,  Merrill,  Curzon,  and  other  families  of 
prominence  in  that  neighborhood. 

Most  of  the  graves  are  marked  by  headstones,  but  many  of 
the  inscriptions  upon  them  cannot  now  be  deciphered.  It 
is,  therefore,  impossible  to  give  the  date  of  the  first  inter- 
ment with  accuracy.  The  oldest  stone  marks  the  grave 
of  Mrs.  Hannah  Bartlett,  who  died  May  i,  1705.  Her  son 
Stephen  was  the  father  of  Josiah  Bartlett,  who  was  the 
first  to  vote  for,  and  the  second  to  sign,  the  Declaration  of 
Independence. 


QUEEN   ANNE'S   CHAPEL   AND   BELLEVILLE 
CEMETERY. 


In  1693,  the  law  relating  to  the  settlement  and  sujiport  of 
ministers  was  amended  by  the  General  Court  ;  and  the  ma- 
jority in  any  church,  legally  established,  in  any  town  in  tlic 
province  were  authorized  to  elect  a  pastor,  "  and  all  the  in- 
habitants and  rateable  estates  lying  within  such  town,  or  part 
of  a  town  or  place  limited  by  law,"  were  made  taxable  for  the 
maintenance  of  public  worship. 

After  the  long  and  fierce  struggle  which  resulted  in  the 
formation  of  a  new  parish  at  the  west  end  of  the  town  of 
Newbury  a  committee  was  appointed  at  the  first  meeting  of 
the  parish,  recorded  Dec.  24,  1695,  "to  build  and  Repair  y'' 
West  meeting  house  and  to  build  and  repair  y  ministry 
house."  From  subsequent  votes  it  is  evident  that  the  meet- 
ing-house then  standing  on  the  plains,  erected  at  the  expense 
of  a  few  individuals  residing  in  that  vicinity,  was  enlarged, 
repaired,  and  made  ready  for  service.  July  24,  1696,  the 
parish  voted  "to  confirm  Rev.  Samuel  l^elcher  in  the  work  of 
the  ministry  among  us."  He  was  then  residing  in  the  parish, 
and  continued  to  ofificiate  as  minister,  although  he  was  not 
regularly  ordained  and  settled  as  pastor  of  the  church  until 
the  last  Wednesday  in  October,  1698. 

h'or  a  lime  affairs  mox'cd  along  c|uietly  and  peaceabi)',  but 
at  length  a  determined  effort  was  made  to  secure  the  removal 
of  the  meeting-house.  Jan.  15,  1705-6,  "it  was  voted  that 
the  inhabitants  should  either  remoxe  the  meeting  house  and 
build  an  addition  towt,  or  else  build  a  new  meeting  house  and 
get  it  u]-)()n  some  convenient  place  whcie  they  can  ]M'()curc  or 
purchase  land."  A  few  weeks  latei-,  the  records  of  the  parish 
stale,  under  dale  of  l''eb.  2S,   i  705    C),  that 


QUEEN  ANNE'S  CHAPEL  AND  BELLEVILLE  CEMETERY     369 

It  was  voted  that  y  inhal)itants  of  y  west  end  t)f  the  Town  of  New- 
bury will  build  a  new  meeting  house  of  fifty-four  feet  in  length  and 
thirty-four  feet  in  breadth.  And  sett  y^-  s''  house  upon  Pipestave  hill  att 
y*'  westerly  corner  of  P>ancis  Willet  his  Lott.  And  to  choose  a  com- 
mitty  to  agree  with  a  man  or  men  to  build  and  finish  said  house  fitt  to 
meet  in  for  the  publick  worship  within  y"  space  of  five  years  att  y"^ 
farthest.  And  to  meet  in  the  old  meeting-house  five  years.  Not  to 
force  any  person  to  pay  any  money  or  pay  untill  three  years  be  expired. 
And  then  to  pay  one  quarter  part  yearly  of  y^  charg  yt  shall  be  agreed 
upon  for  building  s''  house  untill  y'^  whole  be  paid. 

A  large  number  of  the  inhabitants  Hving  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  old  meeting-house  protested  against  the  adoption  of  this 
vote ;  but  the  majority  of  the  parish  were  determined  to 
assert  their  legal  rights,  and  persistently  refused  to  make  any 
concessions  to  the  minority.  After  the  expiration  of  three 
years,  work  was  commenced  on  the  new  building.  Judge 
Sewall,  in  his  diary,  under  date  of  May  10,  1709,  says 
that  he  "  visited  cousin  Jacob  Toppan  and  laid  a  stone  in  the 
foundation  of  y''  meeting  house  at  Pipe  Staff  hill." 

At  a  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  West  Parish  July 
29,  1 709,  it  was  "  voted  y'  the  present  assessors  shall  forth 
with  take  an  invyce  of  y*'  inhabitants,  and  make  a  Rate  of 
eighty  pounds,  one  third  part  in  money  &  two  thirds  as 
money,  for  defraying  part  of  y'  charg  for  building  &  finishing 
y'  meeting  house  now  standing  upon  pipe  Stave  hill."  July 
17,  1 7 10,  the  parish  voted  to  levy  a  tax  of  ^400  in  part 
payment  of  the  charges  incurred  in  building  the  "  meeting 
house  and  ministry  house"  ;  and  Dec.  7,  171 1,  another  levy 
of  ^100  was  made  for  the  same  purpose.  The  minority, 
who  had  opposed  the  removal  of  the  meeting-house,  stoutly 
resisted  the  payment  of  these  taxes.  In  some  instances  their 
lands  and  household  goods  were  forcibly  taken  and  sold  ;  but 
afterward,  by  order  of  the  General  Court,  the  collector  of  the 
parish  was  instructed  to  return  "  the  goods  and  chattels  that 
he  had  taken  by  distress." 

At  a  meeting  held  April  19,  171 1,  "it  was  voted  to  choose 
a  committee  of  three  men  to  sell  &  dispose  of  y''  ministry 
house  that  Mr.  Belcher  now  dwells  in  and  y*"  Barn  &  y''  land 
thereunto  belonging,  to  purchase  land  for  y''  further  enlarge- 


37°  OULD    NEWBURY 

nient  of  the  Personage  att  Pipe  Stave  hill.  And  allso  to 
take  the  seates  and  boards  &  Glass  out  of  y"'  old  Meeting 
house  to  be  improx'ed  in  the  New  meeting"  house.  And  allso 
to  remove  the  old  meeting  house  &  sett  it  up  att  Pipe  Stave 
hill  to  be  improved  for  a  Barn  for  the  ministry  in  eonvenient 
time.  .  .  .  Serg'  Joseph  Pike,  Serg*  Jacob  Tappan  &  William 
Morse  were  chosen  a  committee  for  the  above  purpose." 

In  the  P2ssex  Registry  for  Deeds,  volume  31,  page  56,  the 
following  conveyance,  dated  May  29,  171 1,  is  recorded:  — 

Jacob  Tappan.  jr.,  Josepli  Pike  &  William  iMor.se.  all  of  Newi)urv. 
being  a  committee  chosen  by  the  inhabitant.s  of  y  West  Precinct  in 
Newbury  aforesaid  to  dispose  &  Sell  y*^  personage  House  &  barn  & 
acre  of  land  as  it  was  granted  by  y''  s''  Town  as  it  is  now  fenced  in  New- 
bury in  the  West  precinct  where  y^'  Reverend  M''  Belcher  now  dwells, 
for  £(^0  in  currant  money  &  convey  to  John  Sawyer,  jr.,  tailor,  of  New- 
bury (the  money  to  be  disposed  of  for  y''  vse  of  y^'  West  precinct 
Inhabitants  towards  y  Settlem'  of  y"^  ministry  vpon  Pipe  Staff  Hill  in 
s''  Newbury),  "  All  that  Personage  House  y*^^  Reverend  M""  Samuel 
Belcher  now  dwells  in,  As  Also  y"'  Psonages  Barn  Adjoining  to  y''  s'' 
House,  As  Also  that  acre  of  Land,  be  the  same  more  or  less,  as  it  was 
granted  by  y^'  Town  of  Newbury  And  as  y''  ffence  now  Standeth  abovt 
s''  Land  And  it  is  bounded  by  y''  comon  lands  in  S''  Newbury  on  eveV}' 
side,  y^'  s''  Dwelling  house  and  y''  S''  Barn  now  Standing  by  or  vpon  y'' 
s''  Land." 

The  vote  to  take  the  seats  and  glass  from  the  old  meeting- 
house was  doubtless  intended  to  defeat  the  plan  that  had  been 
matured  by  some  twenty-five  or  thirty  persons  residing"  at  the 
plains,  and  to  lender  it  impossible  for  them  to  carr}'  out  the 
agreement  made  July  12,  1710,  which  reads  as  follows  :  — 

We  whos  names  Are  hearto  Subscribed  doo  Agree  And  oblidge  our- 
sealves  to  each  other  to  mayntain  the  publick  IMinistrv  At  the  old  meet- 
ing house  in  ye  west  jirecinct  in  Newbury.  Although  we  are  forscd  to 
l)ay  Klswliare  wliat  shall  be  Icvid  ujion  us. 

Without  waiting  for  dehiiite  action  on  the  part  of  the 
committee  aj^pointed  April  19,  1  71  i,  a  number  of  disorderl)- 
l)ersons  from  the  upper  ]xirt  of  the  parish  came  down  in  the 
night,  demolished  the  oUl  meeling-house.  and  carried  away 
all  the  materials  that  were  ot  \ahie. 

Thoroughly   indignant   and   aioused    b)'   these   unjuslitiahle 


QUEEN  ANNh'S  CHAPEL  AiYD  HELLEl'/LLE   CEMETERY    371 

proceedings,  the  minority  determined  to  replace  the  building 
that  had  been  destroyed.  In  spite  of  serious  opposition  they 
provided  the  necessary  materials,  and  set  about  the  work  of 
reconstruction,  l^ut  July  19,  171 1,  the  General  Court  ad- 
vised and  directed  that  the  raising  of  the  meeting-house  be 
deferred  until  a  hearing  u])()n  the  subject  could  be  had,  and 
August  24  issued  an  order  forbidding  Samuel  Bartlett,  Joshua 
Brown,  Joseph  Annis,  and  their  associates  from  proceeding 
with  the  work.  Complaint  having  been  made  that  these 
orders  were  disregarded  and  unheeded,  the  General  Court, 
under  date  of  Nov^  2,  171 1,  peremptorily  ordered  "that  the 
building  of  the  said  house  be  not,  on  any  pretence  whatever, 
farther  proceeded  in." 

In  this  emergency  some  of  the  persons  named  in  this 
order,  who  were  determined  to  provide  in  some  way  for  the 
settlement  of  "  a  sound  orthodox  preacher"  in  their  imme- 
diate neighborhood,  applied  to  Mr.  John  Bridger,  then  resid- 
ing at  Portsmouth,  N.  H.,  for  his  advice  and  assistance.  To 
this  request  the  following  answer  was  returned  :  — 

Portsmouth  in  New  Hampshire  in 
New  England,  Xber  4,  171 1. 

GcHtloiicn  Chik/io-cvn, —  This  with  great  satisfaction  and  joy  that  I 
am  soe  pleasingly  surprized  to  hear  of  your  good  affection,  zeal  and 
resolution  toward  the  established  Church  of  Great  Britain,  which  if  it 
please  God  to  continue  and  strengthen  your  minds  and  hearts  in  so 
holy  and  good  a  work  I  will  by  God's  assistance  soon  see  you  and 
defend  you  from  all  damages  you  shall  fall  under  or  suffer  by  such  a 
Church's  being  built,  in  any  Court  or  Assembly  in  New  England,  they 
having  no  power  over  the  Church  ;  and  I  dare  engage  to  procure  from 
the  Bishop  of  London  a  good  sober  orthodox  Preacher  if  agreeable  to 
you ;  otherwise  if  you  have  any  good  man  amongst  you  that  will  go 
over  &  receive  Orders,  I  will  put  you  in  a  method,  and  how  to  get  a 
Salary  from  home  for  the  Minister  from  ye  Society  for  Propagating  the 
Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,  or  from  ye  Bp  of  London.  I  shall  not  be 
further  troublesome  at  present,  only  wishing  and  praying  to  Almighty 
God  to  continue  you  in  your  good  desires  to  the  Church,  promising 
you  to  stand  by  you  against  all  opposers  whatever,  and  am, 

With  faithfulness  and  sincerity. 

Your  affect,  friend  &  .Servant, 

J.  Bridger. 


372  OULD   NEWBURY 

I'Vom  subsct|ucnt  letters  and  icptn-ts  sent  to  the  Society 
for  the  Pn)pa<;ation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,  it  is  evi- 
dent that  Mr.  Bridger  was  a  strong  and  zealous  Churchman, 
and  that  he  was  able,  in  his  official  capacity  as  governor- 
general  of  her  Majesty's  woods  and  lands  in  America,  to 
exert  considerable  influence  in  fax'or  of  the  cause  he  had 
espoused.  He  came  to  Newbury  ;  and,  after  consultation 
with  the  men  who  had  undertaken  to  build  the  new  meeting- 
house, he  offered  to  protect  them  in  their  efforts  to  establish 
a  place  of  worship  at  the  plains,  proxided  they  would  accept 
and  use  the  liturgy  and  order  of  service  prescribed  by  the 
Church  of  England. 

A  few  members  of  the  parish  who  were  familiar  with  the 
Book  of  Common  Prayer,  and  willing  to  comply  with  this 
request,  were  invited  to  sign  a  petition  which  was  drawn  up 
and  addressed  to  the  Bishop  of  London.  This  petition  was 
dated  Newbury,  Jan.  28,  1711-12,  and  reads  as  follows:  — 

May  It  Plea.se  Your  Grace, 

We  your  Grace's  mo.st  huml)le  Petitioners  Pray  leave  in  the  liehalf 
of  ourselves  &  others  to  lay  before  your  Grace  in  as  few  words  as  the 
matter  will  admit  of  in  relation  to  building  our  Church  with  admission. 
In  the  first  place  our  meeting  house  was  puU'd  down  by  rude  hands 
which  to  our  satisfaction  we  had  enjoy'd  many  years  past ;  since  that 
&  opposite  parties  had  levied  by  Tax  on  our  estates,  to  the  building 
another  meeting  house  so  far  distant  from  us  &  many  others  that  we  nor 
they  were  able  to  go  so  far,  which  renders  it  wholly  unserviceable  to  all, 
notwithstanding  we  was  the  greatest  part  of  the  whole.  Tliese  proceed- 
ings obliged  us  to  build  a  Church  &  did  lV'  now  do  declare  it  to  be  the 
Queen's  Chapel  built  on  our  own  land,  yet  cannot  proceed  tliercon  bv 
reason  of  a  warrant  from  the  general  assembly,  signed  by  the  Gov'  ».\: 
Sec>',  a  Copy  of  which  pray  leave  to  enclose.  This  put  an  entire  .Stop  to 
our  proceedings,  till  Jolin  Pridger,  Ksc]',  Surveyor  general  of  her  Majesty's 
woods  &  Land,  iSic,  heard  of  our  trouljlcs  tS:  sent  us  several  letters  Ov  en- 
couraged us  to  proceed  ;  i)ut  he  has  now  come  to  our  relief.  ^:  lias  put 
us  in  this  way  of  Petitioning  your  Grace  from  whom,  wee  by  Mr. 
Piridger  are  fully  persuaded,  ^K:  pray  a  satisfactory  &  speedv  ans'',  being 
without  any  Parson  to  prcacli  to  us.  We  iuwo  made  Mr.  Pridgcr  our 
agent.  \-  ha\'e  ^ivcn  liim  the  Land  for  tlic  Churcli.  i!v  ha\'c  (.'Ualile  liini 
wilii  workmen  \-  materials  to  linish  the  Ghui'ch.  i.\:  is  really  a  Pati'on 
to  US,  (Jt  has  engaged  himself  to  us  iJt  to  go  on  in  that  work  against  all 
opposers   whatever,  <S:   as   he   has,  so  he   will   stand    in   the   Gap   for  us. 


QUEEN  ANNE'S  CHAPEL  AND  BELLEVILLE  CEMETERY    373 

We  most  heartily  pray  his  addresses  may  be  acceptable  to  her  Majesty 
&  your  Cirace  &  that  her  Majesty  would  establish  him  nearer  us,  which 
would  be  of  great  service  to  the  Church  in  these  parts  as  well  as 
strengthen  him,  in  her  Majesty's  Service  &  interest.  Humbly  praying 
your  Grace  to  lay  before  &  intercede  with  her  Majesty  in  these  our 
humble  Petitions  &  with  humble  submission  pray  leave  to  subscribe, 

Your  Grace's  most  Obd'  Dutiful  Servants, 

John  Bartlett, 
Josh  Browne, 
Joseph  Anxis, 
Saml  Bartlett. 

Two  or  three  weeks  later  the  following  petition  was 
prepared   and  presented  :  — 

To  His  Excellency  Joseph  Dudley,  Esq'',  Captain  General  and  Govern"" 
in  Chief  in  and  over  her  Majesty's  Province  of  the  Massachusetts 
Bay  in  New  England. 

The  humble  Petition  of  several  Freeholders  and  other  Inhabitants  of 
the  Town  of  Newbury  in  behalf  of  themselves  and  others. 

Whereas  your  Excellency's  Petitioners  have  declared  themselves 
Members  of  the  Episcopal  Church  of  England  as  by  law  established, 
and  have  raised  a  building  of  Almighty  God  according  to  ye  manner  of 
worship  prescribed  in  the  said  Church,  we  humbly  desire  your  Excel- 
lency's protection  and  encouragement  in  our  just  and  laudable  under- 
takings. We  are  convinced  that  the  Church  of  England  is  a  pure 
orthodox  Church,  and  are  resolved  to  continue  no  longer  in  that  separa- 
tion which  has  so  unhappily  prevailed  among  the  mistaken  and  prejudiced 
Inhabitants  of  this  Country.  This  resolution  has  occasioned  the  ill-will 
of  our  Dissenting  Brethren  who  lay  upon  us  more  than  ordinary  rates 
for  the  maintenance  of  their  Minister  and  other  purposes  of  that  Nature, 
which  act  of  theirs  is  very  great  hardship  and  grievance  to  us  since  we 
have  addressed  our  right  Reverend  Diocesan,  the  Bishop  of  London,  to 
send  us  a  Minister  whom  we  shall  most  gladly  receive,  but  think  our- 
selves under  no  obligation  to  any  other,  it  being  a  thing  unknown  in 
her  Majesty's  dominions  that  the  members  of  the  Church  of  England 
should  be  forced  to  contribute  to  the  support  of  the  tolerated  dissenting 
Teachers.  We  therefore  pray  your  Excellenc}'  that  we  may  not  be 
molested    for    the    future  upon    this  ace',   and    beg  leave    to    subscribe 

ur.  e  ves  Your  Excellency's  most  obedient  humble  Servants, 

John  Eyre,  Wh.l^'  Huse.  Joshua  Brown,  Sen'r. 

John  Bartlet,  John   Merrill.  Josl\h   Sawyer, 

Sami-  Bartlet,  Joseph  Annls,  Nath'    Bartlett, 

Rich"  Williams.  Tho^  Bartlett,  Joshua  Sawyer. 
and  ten  others. 


374  OULD   XKWBURY 

To  this  pctititjn  Governor  Dudley  rei)lied  as  follows  :  — 

HosTON",  2.S  February.  1711-12. 

I  rcc"d  vcstcrdav  an  addri'ss  and  I'L-tition  signed  by  twenty-two 
persons  l- reeliolders  and  Inliabitants  of  the  Town  of  Newbury  setting 
forth  that  tliev  are  declared  Meniljcrs  of  the  Episcopal  Church  of  Eng- 
hmd  as  h\  law  esta])lished.  and  that  they  liave  raised  a  l)uilding  for  ye 
service  of  God  according  to  the  manner  of  worship  prescribed  in  the 
said  Church,  desiring  protection  and  encouragement  therein  accordingly. 

And  that  thev  liave  addressed  the  Right  Rev'^'  the  Bp  of  London  to 
liave  a  Minister  sent  to  them,  and  that  thereupon  they  may  not  be  obliged 
to  contribute  to  the  subsistance  of  tlie  other  Ministers  of  any  other 
profession  as  at  large  is  set  forth  in  ye  said   Petition. 

I  am  also  further  informed  by  the  ReV'  Mr.  Harris,  one  of  the 
Ministers  of  the  Cluuxh  of  luigland  in  this  place,  that  at  their  desire  he 
has  visited  and  preached  to  that  new  Congregation  and  had  a  very  con- 
siderable Auditory,  and  tliat  he  will  continue  so  to  do  until  their  said 
address  to  the  15p  of  London  shall  be  considered  and  orders  given 
therein.  I  am  therefore  of  opinion  that  the  said  Petition'"  and  others 
that  join  with  tliem  ought  to  l)e  peaceably  allowed  in  their  lawful  i^ro- 
ceedings  therein  for  their  good  establishment  and  ought  not  to  be  taxed 
or  imposed  upon  for  the  support  and  maintenance  of  any  other  public 
worship  in  the  said  Town,  of  w*^'"  I  desire  all  persons  concerned  to  take 
notice  accordingly.  ^^^.^^^  ^^,^^,^.^.  ,^^^.  ,^^^,^_j 

J.    DtDI.EV. 

To   Her   Majesty's  Justices  of   I^eace  for  the   County  of   Esse.x,  I\Lassa- 
chusetts  Bay. 

In  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society's  Collections,  sixth 
series,  volume  i,  page  416,  is  a  letter  from  Samuel  Sewall 
to  Colonel  Thomas  Noyes,  of  Newbury,  commentini;'  on  the 
prayer  of  the  petitioners.      The  letter  reads  as  tollows  :  — 

March   3.  17'^ 

Hoiiorcii  Sir. —  The  2</''  Febr'>  last  I  saw  the  certainty  of  what  I 
could  hardlv  believe  before:  namelv.  Deacon  Merril.  Deacon  lirown. 
John  Bartlett  and  others.  22  in  all  Presenting  a  Petition  to  the  C.over- 
nour  by  Joseph  Baylv,  one  of  the  22  Subscribers,  Praying  his  I-lxcel- 
lencv's  Protection  of  them  as  being  of  the  Episcojjal  Church  of  Engld  ; 
That  thev  iniglit  not  be  opi)ress"(l  with  Rates,  (wheras)  they  did  not  \\\\\ 
longer  continue  in  the  .Seijaration  of  their  mistaken  dissenting  iirethreii. 
This  was  done  Kebr.  27.  lUit  the  (io\ern'  shewed  it  Ko  the  Council 
the   29"'. 


QC/J':E.V  AiVN/i'S  CHAPEL  AND  BELLEVILLE  CEMETERY    375 

Now,  tliough  tis  well  enough  known  what  was  the  spring  of  their 
motion,  and  notwithstanding  their  Aprons  of  Fig-Leaves,  they  walk 
naked,  and  their  Neighbors  see  their  shame,  yet  I  apprehend  it  will  be 
most  advisable  for  those  of  the  West  ]'recinct  Not  to  meddle  with  them, 
or  forcibly  take  of  them  anything  towards  defraying  any  of  the  Charges 
of  the  Precinct.  This  seems  to  me  best  for  the  Precinct  and  best  for 
Newbury,  and  for  the  Province.  And  most  for  the  Interest  of  Religion  ; 
And  we  shou'd  stick  at  nothing  for  CHRIST.  You  will  have  oppor- 
tunity, I  hope,  to  argue  these  Things  in  the  Time  of  the  Silting  of  the 
General  Court,  which  now  approaches.      I  am.  Sir, 

Your  friend  and  humble  Serv' 

S.   Sew  ALL. 

On  page  418  of  the  same  book  is  another  letter,  from 
Judge  Sewall  to  Mr.  Nathaniel  Coffin,  who  was  at  that  time 
deacon  of  the  First  Church  and  clerk  of  the  town  of  New- 
bury. The  letter  is  interesting,  and  discloses,  to  some  extent, 
the  means  employed  to  reclaim  Deacon  Joshua  Brown,  and 
turn   him   from   the  error  of  his  way. 

Under  date  of  March  12,  17',^,,  Sewall  writes:  — 

^V;', —  I  have  thought  on  your  words  relating  to  the  West  Precinct  in 
Newbury,  mentioned  in  your  Letter  of  the  22"'  of  January  last.  It  came 
to  my  mind  that  my  Landlord  Webster  was  a  near  neighbour  to  Joshua 
Brown  for  many  years.  You  are  a  Younger  Man  and  a  Deacon.  I 
would  have  you  goe  to  Mr.  Webster,  and  accompany  him  to  your 
ijrother  Deacon  Brown,  and  speak  to  him  with  that  Seriousness  and 
Solemnity  as  the  case  requires,  and  see  if  you  can  reclaim  him  and  re- 
cover him.  Be  not  discouraged  with  thinking  that  he  will  not  hear  you. 
Hereafter,  possibly,  lie  may  complain  that  few,  or  none,  dealt  plainly 
and  faithfully  with  him.  However  it  be,  if  you  in  faithfuUness  and 
Meekness  endeavor  to  restore  your  brother  thus  siu'pris'd,  you  will  have 
peace  &  Comfort  in  it.      Success  belongs  to  GOD. 


You  had  best  quickly  go  to  Mr.  Webster,  and  make  your  Visit  before 
your  intentions  be  known.  If  it  take  /Er,  you  will  be  in  danger  of  being 
prevented,  or  much  hindered.  Accept  of  Mr.  Vincent's  Explanation  of 
the  Assembly's  Catechisme  ;  And  present  the  epistles  to  Mr.  Ordway, 
the  father,  in  my  name  with  my  service.  I  thank  you  for  your  Kind 
Affection  to  my  dear  Kinsman.  He  was  carried  to  Rest  in  his  Grave 
Febr.  27,  the  day  your  neighbour  Bayley  was  presenting  the  Petition  to 
the   Gov'r,  signed   by  himself  and   21    more,  of  which   Abraham   Merril 


376  OULD   NEWBURY 

cmd   Josluia    Ihown   were   two.      We   had    need   pray   mutually   one   for 
another,  that  we  may  not  be  led  into  Temjitation  I      1  am.  .Sir. 

Your  friend  and  Serv't 

.S.  .S. 

Meanwhile  Mr.  l^ridger  had  as^ain  vi.sited  Newbury,  antl 
assured  tlie  workmen  engai;ed  in  building  the  proposed 
chinch  or  chaj^el  that  he  would  guarantee  to  protect  them 
from  prosecution  if  they  would  continue  at  work  and  com- 
plete the  building.  In  order  to  avoid  further  trouble  and 
litigation,  and  at  the  same  time  secure  the  propert)'  from 
possible  injury,  the  following  agreement  was  drawn  uj)  and 
signed  :  — 

Newbury.  28"' Jan..  1711. 

We  whose  names  are  hereunto  subscribed  do  by  these  presents 
promise  and  declare  that  we  will  provide  and  furnish  Workmen  and 
materials  to  finish  and  compleat  the  Church  now  standing  on  M'' 
Brown's  land,  called  the  Queen's  Chappel.  and  we  do  hereby  desire 
John  Bridger,  Esq',  to  take  into  his  care  and  management  the  entire 
finishing  and  compleating  the  said  Church  fit  for  the  preaching  the 
Gospel  therein,  and  do  again  declare  that  we  will  Supply  y  said  Bridger 
with  all  necessaries  and  materials  that  such  a  work  may  or  do  require : 
and  we  do  further  declare  that  this  writing  shall  be  good  and  valid  in  y'' 
law  as  if  each  of  us  had  given  our  distinct  and  Separate  Bonds  for  the 
performing  of  the  work  before  mentioned.  As  Witness  our  hands  and 
Seals  this  28"'  dav  of  January  in  the  tenth  year  of  her  Majesty's  Reign. 
Annoq.  Domini,  i  71  1 . 

Joseph  Anxis,  Ai5rah.\m   Merrill. 

Joseph   Bailev.  Joshua  Browx. 

JOHX    BaRTLET,  SAiM'L    BaRTLETT. 

Joshua  Browx,  Jux'r.  Rich"  Willla.ms. 

John  Merrill,  Jux'r.  Sam'l   Sawyer, 

JosiAH  Sawyer,  Sku'per    Lunt. 

Thomas  Browx,  Rk  h"  Bartlett. 

Thomas  Bartlet.  Tristram   Browx. 

RoiiERT  Rogers.  Johx   Eayr. 

Dax'l   Osilaway.  Joiix   Bartlet. 

William   Huse.  John    Kcjgers, 

Ephraim    I)a\!s.  JdiiN    Sawyer. 

Natii"    Bakili-.t.  John    1Ii:wi:s, 

Joshua   Sawyer.  Nk  11^   I)a\is. 

Joiix    Bartlet.  Sa.\p    BARri.ErT. 


QUEEN  ANNE'S  CHAPEL  AND  BELLEVILLE  CEMETERY    377 

When  the  above  agreement  had  been  duly  signed  and 
delivered  to  Mr.  Bridger,  he  executed  in  due  form  an  obliga- 
tion to  hold  them  harmless  in  any  action  that  might  be 
brought  against  them,  and  bound  himself  to  complete  the 
building  previous  to  July,  171 2,  provided  men  and  materials 
were  furnished  him  in  accordance  with  the  terms  of  the 
contract.      Mr.  Bridger's  obligation  was  as  follows  :  — 

Newbury,  February  2o"i,  171^ 

Whereas  Abraham  Merrill  and  Joshua  Brown  of  the  West  Precinct 
of  Newbury,  Gentlemen,  and  others  have  obliged  themselves  to  me  the 
subscriber  by  a  writing  under  their  hands  and  seals  bearing  date  the 
28"!  of  January  last  past  to  furnish,  provide,  &  find  me  with  men  and 
materials  to  finish  &  compleat  the  Church  now  standing  on  the  Sub- 
scriber John  Bridger's  land  fit  for  the  performance  and  worship  of 
Almighty  God  according  to  the  established  Church  of  Great  Britain, 
now  Know  Ye,  That  by  these  presents  I  do  oblige  myself  to  finish  & 
compleat  the  said  Church  when  the  said  Abraham  Merrill,  Joshua 
Brown,  &c.  shall  furnish,  provide,  and  find  me  with  men  and  materials, 
and  that  I  in  their  stead  or  behalf  will  bear  them  harmless  and  answer 
for  them  for  their  so  building  the  Church  in  any  action  or  cause  of 
actions  that  shall  arise  therefrom,  &  appear  &  defend  them  in  any  of 
their  Courts  in  this  Province,  The  Church  to  be  finished  in  or  before 
July  next  ensuing  this  date,  provided  they  furnish  me  with  men  and  ma- 
terials as  aforesaid  to  compleat  the  Church  as  aforesaid.  In  Witness 
whereof  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and  seal  the  day  and  year  above 

^^""""-  J.  Bridger  (Seal) 

In  addition  to  the  facts  recited  in  the  above  contract  and 
obligation,  Mr.  Bridger,  in  a  letter  to  the  secretary  of  the 
Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts, 
wrote  as  follows  :  — 

Sir^ —  Before  I  gave  this  obligation  I  bought  ye  land  that  the  Church 
stands  on  to  prevent  their  alienation  of  said  land  and  Church,  and  I 
have  bound  myself  to  them  never  to  alienate  neither  Church  nor  land  to 
any  other  use  whatever.  I  have  not  as  yet  made  over  the  land,  but 
design  to  do  it  very  soon. 

I  also  intend  to  settle  on  that  Church  200  acres  of  good  land  that 
lyes  upon  the  same  River  of  Merrimack  by  which  River  the  Church 
now  stands,  so  soon  as  the  land  is  divided  amongst  the  proprietors,  which 
I  hope  to  do  this  Summer,  being  one  of  them. 

As  witness  my  hand  this  19  April,  1714.  J.   Brh^ger. 


378  OULD   XEIVBUKY 

In  March,  1711-12,  Mr.  Bridger  invited  Rev.  Mr.  Harris, 
one  of  the  ministers  of  King's  Chapel,  Boston,  to  preach  at 
Newbury.  lliis  invitation  was  accepted,  and  a  congrega- 
tion of  two  or  three  hundred  gathered  to  listen  to  the  new 
preacher. 

During  the  next  twelve  months  he  came  many  times  to 
Newbury,  bringing  with  him  prayer  books  and  other  publica- 
tions relating  to  the  Church  of  England. 

From  the  records  of  the  Second  Parish  in  Newbury,  now 
the  First  in  West  Newbury,  it  appears  that  at  a  meeting 
held  Jan.  28,  171 2-1 3, 

Serg'  John  Ordway  and  John  Emery  were  chosen  and  desired  to  give 
notis  to  several  persons  that  had  absented  themselves  from  y^  Com- 
munion at  y""  Lord's  Table,  viz: — -Deacon  Abraham  Merril.  Deacon 
Joshua  Brown,  Joseph  Bailey,  Lieut.  Sam^'  Sawyer,  Abiel  Long.  Joshua 
Brown,  Jun.,  and  John  Baily  and  Anne  Huce  to  give  in  their  reasons  for 
withdrawing  from  y''  comunion. 

At  a  church  meeting  held  Feb.  3,  1 712-13,  all  the  persons 
named  above,  with  the  exception  of  Anne  Huse,  made  answer 
as  follows  :  — 

1.  We  doe  count  that  you  acted  illegally  and  not  like  christians  in 
disposing  of  an  house  that  you  never  built. 

2.  For  violently  pulling  down  our  meeting  house  and  carrying  it  away 
contrary  to  our  minds  and  consent. 

3.  And  also  taking  away  from  our  Brethren  &  neighbors  part  of  their 
estates  by  distress,  which  we  doe  Count  Contrary  to  law  &  illegal.  And 
we  Count  very  unchristian  like. 

An  attempt  was  evidently  made  to  recover  damages  for 
the  destruction  of  the  meeting-house,  but  a  compromise  was 
made  before  the  case  was  brought  to  trial.  Judge  Sewall, 
in  his  diary,  under  date  of  May  19,  171  3,  makes  the  following- 
statement  with  reference  to  the  coiut  at  Ipswich  :  — 

Mr.  Rogers  prays  at  opening  of  the  Court.  l)in\l  at  Smith's.  At 
noon  Brother  and  I  persuaded  them  of  Artichoke  precinct  to  agree. 
I  gave  L'  Moodev  Five  pounds,  and  Jn"  ICmery  gave  hve  pounds,  and 
Moodey  and    others   let   fall   their    Review  :    went   into    Court   and   said. 


QUEEiV AXiVE'S  CHAPEL  AXD  BELLEVILLE  CEMETERY    379 

Thev  are  Agreed.     The  Agreem"t  was  made  in   Smith's  Garret.     Ad- 
journed sine  die. 

From  a  report  made  by  Rev.  John  Lambton,  Feb.  12, 
1 71 3-14,  to  the  secretary  of  the  Society  for  the  Propagation 
of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,  it  appears  that  Mr.  Lambton 
took  charge  of  the  church  at  Newbury  Nov.  14,  171 3, 
having  been  appointed  to  that  place  by  Hon.  Francis 
Nicholson,  Esq.      In   that   report   I\Ir.   Lambton   says:  — 

Upon  my  arrival  at  Newbury  I  found  a  handsome  building  raised  & 
finished  at  the  sole  cost  and  e.xpence  of  the  Inhabitants  in  that  place; 
for  the  service  of  Almighty  God  according  to  ye  way  of  worship  pre- 
scribed in  our  excellent  church.  There  is  a  considerable  auditory  every 
Sabbath  Day  to  the  number  of  200  &  upwards,  and  would  dayly  in- 
crease, only  they  are  imposed  upon  by  ye  neighborhood  to  pay  to  the 
Independent  Ministers  by  us.  Our  adversaries  here  insinuate  that  they 
are  a  frivolous  and  inconsiderate  ill  people,  W-'^  is  quite  otherwise,  as 
Rev'i  Mr.  Harris  who  has  lived  among  them  and  myself  now  present 
w'h  them  can  testifie.  They  are  a  sober,  good  people.  &  were  settled  in 
their  principles  by  reading  D--  King's  books  &  others  w^''  have  been 
dispers'd  among  them  by  ye  Ministers  of  ye  Church  of  England  here. 

The  question  of  taxation  still  continued  to  disturb  the 
members  of  the  parish  ;  and  Rev.  Mr.  Lambton  wrote,  under 
date  of  Jan.  27,  171 3-14,  to  General  Francis  Nicholson,  as 
follows  :  — 

May  It  Please  Your  Excellency, — 

The  neighbors  who  have  long  threatened  to  trouble  the  Church  of 
England  here  have  now  put  them  in  execution,  and  summoned  John 
Merril  to  appear  before  Justice  Juet  (the  others  not  caring  to  meddle) 
to  pay  a  rate  which  was  made  after  they  had  publickly  declared  them- 
selves of  the  Church  of  England,  and  it  is  the  same  rate  for  which 
Thomas  Brown  was  carried  to  Prison  last  May  and  badly  used  there, 
but  on  complaint  to  the  Governour  was  set  at  liberty  by  the  Justice  that 
committed  him,  being  ordered  to  release  him  himself  and  pay  the 
charges.  They  intend  to  trouble  several  more  of  our  neighbours  for 
the  tame,  and  how  they  will  be  relieved  they  know  not,  unless  your 
Excellency  be  pleased  to  interfere,  having  it  in  your  power  to  decide 
all  such  matters. 

They  have  come  upon  them  in  a  very  bad  time,  just  when  we  were 


380  OCLD   XEWBVRY 

about  to  receive   the  ever  blessed   Sacrament,   havin;;  deferred  it  till  a 
fitter  opportunity  and  troubles  ended,  for  w'''  they  wholly  depend  upon 
your  Excellency's  goodness. 
Pray  pardon  the  boldness  of 

May  it  please  your  E.xcellency.  &c. 

Jn".  Lambtox. 

The  trouble  some  people  speak  so  much  ill  language,  nay,  treason 
against  her  Majesty  and  rail  so  again.st  your  E.xcellency  that  I  am 
ashamed  to  mention  it. 

A  week  later  he  write.s  again  to  General  Nicholson  on  the 
same  subject,  as  follows:  — 

i\T       I.  1)1  \-        1-       11  Newbury,  Feb.  3'',  1713. 

May  It  1  lease  \  our  Excellency  j        /    j 

The  bearer  hereof  comes  to  inform  you  of  the  imprisonment  of  John 
Merril  for  a  rate  made  half  a  year  after  the  erection  of  the  Queen's 
Chapel  here,  which  our  adversaries  takes  no  notice  of,  they  being  now 
resolved  to  persecute  the  Churchmen  and  make  them  pay  to  the  support 
of  their  Ministers,  saying  that  nobody  has  anything  to  do  to  defend  us: 
and,  if  they  are  permitted  to  go  thus  resolutely  on,  I  am  afraid  the  church 
will  suffer  abundantly  by  it.  But  the  hopes  we  have  of  your  Excel- 
lency's favor  and  protection  (who  has  always  been  a  true  and  zealous 
Member  of  the  Church)  mightily  inspirits  and  enlivens  us,  that,  though 
now  trodden  under  foot,  we  shall  rise  again  more  glorious  when  the 
truth  and  justice  of  our  cause  comes  to  be  Known.  Herewith  comes 
the  copy  of  his  commitment,  that  your  Excellency  may  fullier  see  how 
unjustly  the}'  proceed  against  us,  which  is  all  at  present  from 

\'our  Excellency's  most  obedient  Humble  Servant, 

JoHX     L.AMBTOX. 

Concerning  the  Rev.  Mr.  Lambtt)n  very  little  is  known. 
When  he  came  to  Newbury,  he  was  chaplain  to  her  Majesty's 
ship  "  I'heni.x."  His  ministerial  career  was  evidently  inter- 
ru):)te(l  for  a  time,  and  the  date  of  his  resignation  is  imcer- 
tain.  A  letter  from  (ieneral  Nicholson  to  the  cluu'ch  wardens 
and  \estrymen  of  Newbiuy  in  New  hjiglancl,  dated  Piscata- 
qua,  July  31,  1 7 14,  .says:  — 

i'lcnt :  —  The  great  fatigue  of  my  business  together  with  a  long  indis- 
position is  the  reason  I  have  not  visited  you.  Mr.  Lampton  is  come 
once  more  amontr   you,  and   as  I  have  hitherto  used  niv  interest,  so  you 


QUEEN  ANNE'S  CHAPEL  AND  BELLEVILLE  CEMETERY    381 

may  depend  upon  the  continuance  of  everything  in  my  Power  for  your 
Services  both  here  and  in  England. 

I  am,  gent.,  your  affectionate  Friend  and  faithful  humble  Servant 

Ff.   Nicholson. 

Gent'^'  pray  give  my  love  to  all  our  friends  of  the  Church. 

The  records  of  the  parish  previous  to  the  settlement  of 
Rev.  Mr.  Lambton  are  very  meagre  and  defective.  The  first 
meeting  recorded  is  March  30,  1714.  Abraham  Merrill  and 
Joshua  Brown  were  chosen  church  wardens,  and  Samuel 
Sawyer,  Samuel  Bartlett,  Abiel  Long,  John  Bartlett,  Richard 
Bartlett,  Thomas  Brown,  and  Joseph  Bayley  vestrymen. 

The  first  baptism  recorded  is  that  of  Henry  Lunt,  son  of 
Skipper  and  Elizabeth  Lunt,  April  11,  1714;  and  the  first 
marriage  is  Isaac  Rogers  to  Rebecca  Rawlins,  March  25, 
1714. 

Rev.  Mr.  Lambton  probably  remained  at  Newbury  until 
the  autumn  of  1714.  The  wardens  and  vestrymen  then 
applied  to  Mr.  John  Bridger,  who  was  in  London,  requesting 
him  to  send  them  another  minister.  In  answer  to  this  re- 
quest Rev.  Henry  Lucas,  after  a  long  passage,  arrived  in 
New  England  Sept.  12,  171 5;  and  about  twelve  o'clock, 
September    17,  he  was   at    Newbury. 

On  the  27th  of  October,  171  5,  the  members  of  the  church 
at  Pipe  Stave  Hill,  then  under  the  pastoral  care  of  Rev. 
John  Tufts,  held  a  meeting,  at  which  it  was  agreed 

yt  Lieut.  Caleb  Moody  &  Ens.  Stephen  Emery  should  desire  those  y' 
were  members  of  this  church  living  below  Artichoke  River  y'  had  with- 
drawn Themselves  from  Communion  a  considerable  time  to  meet  y*" 
Church  at  y  Meeting  House  on  November  ;">  next ;  there  to  debate 
in  a  friendly  manner  y  past  Difference  &  see  if  some  thing  could  not 
be  done  or  said  to  make  them  more  easy  &  draw  y'"  to  our  Comunion 
again :  &  to  hear  ^  Reason  why  they  have  withdrawn,  &,  if  we  cannot 
draw  them  by  Fair  means,  to  determine  wh  measures  to  take  with  them. 

What  answer  was  made  to  this  proposal  is  uncertain.  The 
records  of  the  church  at  Pipe  Stave  Hill  do  not  give  any 
details    of    the  conference,   if    one  was   held.      It  is   evident. 


382  OULD   NEIVBUKY 

however,  that  energetic  measures  were  decided  upon  ;  and 
the  wardens  and  vestrymen  of  Queen  Anne's  Chapel,  under 
date  of  June  2,  171 8, 

Agreed  at  ye  vestr\-  that  if  any  member  of  ye  Ch  be  distrained  upon 
for  ye  payment  of  rates  to  any  other  minister  y"  that  of  this  Ch  that  ye 
whole  body  will  try  ye  case  with  any  person  or  persons  at  law.  and  that 
each  member  of  ye  Ch  of  England  shall  bear  his  proportion  accord- 
ing to  his  estate,  for  ye  assistance  of  any  person  that  shall  be  distrained 
upon,  to  carry  on  and  end  ye  said  suit  at  Law. 

Witness  my  hand. 

Hex  :  Lucas. 

Anxious  and  disturbed  by  the  controversy,  but  evidently 
unable  to  deal  with  the  difficulties  of  the  situation  or  recon- 
cile the  conflicting  views  and  opinions  that  prevailed,  Rev. 
Mr.  Lucas  wrote  his  last  letter  to  the  secretary  of  the  Society 
for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts  June  19, 
1720.     He  died  Aug.  23,  1720. 

He  was  a  man  of  morbid  temperament  and  cjuick  sensibili- 
ties, liable  to  periods  of  deep  depression.  The  church  under 
his  care  seems  to  have  gradually  lost  vigor  and  strength  ; 
and,  from  the  general  tenor  of  his  reports,  sent  annually  to 
P^ngiand,  it  is  easy  to  see  that  he  did  not  have  the  sympathy 
and  support  of  his  parishioners.  Discouraged  and  disap- 
pointed, he  is  said  to  have  taken  his  own  life  while  laboring 
under  temporary  mental  derangement. 

Rev.  David  Mossom,  of  Marblehead,  officiated  occasionally 
at  Newbury,  until  the  arrival  of  Rev.  Matthias  Plant,  who 
left  London  Feb.  16,  1722,  in  the  ship  "Drake,"  and  landed 
at  Boston  April  15,  about  twelve  o'clock.  In  his  diary  Mr. 
Plant  wrote  that  he 

Preached  two  sermons  upon  Thursday,  an  appointed  fast,  i\\>\\\  k;"': 
preached  Sunday  22'"'  in  the  morning  only;  set  out  for  IVLarblehead 
24"';  came  thence  to  Newbury  April  26"'  and  ])reached  in  mv  i)arisli 
April   29,   1722. 

Although  the  inhabitants  of  the  west  precinct,  whose  jilace 
of  worship  was  at  Pipe  Stax'c   llill,  had   xoted  April  2,  1714. 


QC/EE.V  A.VXE^S  CHAPEL  AiVD  BELLEVILLE   CEMETERY    383 

"  to  free  all  those  persons  that  are  or  shall  be  for  the  Epis- 
copal way  of  worship  in  ye  Precinct  from  paying  any  rates 
to  the  maintenance  of  y*^  Ministry  amongst  us,  And  also 
all  Quakers,"  it  appears  that  some  years  later  an  attempt 
was  made  to  revive  this  tax.  Rev.  Mr.  Plant,  in  behalf  of 
his  parishioners,  applied  to  Governor  Shute  for  protection, 
and  obtained  the  following  order  directed  "To  his  Majesty's 
Justices  of  ye  Peace  for  ye  County  of  Essex,  or  any  one  of 
them  "  :  — 

BosTox,  July  27,  1722. 

Whereas  upon  information  from  the  Rev.  Matthias  Plant,  minister  of 
the  Church  of  England,  Newbury,  that  several  persons,  inhabitants  in 
that  and  the  adjoining  towns,  have  professed  themselves  members  of  ye 
said  church  and  accordingly  have  entered  their  names  in  their  Register 
Book,  and  that  the  Rt.  Rev.  the  Bishop  of  London  hath  settled  a  minister 
amongst  them  and  that  there  is  a  very  considerable  congregation,  I  do 
therefore  order  that  y''  persons,  who  have  already  declared,  or  shall 
hereafter  declare  for  ye  said  established  church,  be  peaceably  allowed 
in  their  proceedings,  and  must  not  be  taxed  or  imposed  upon  for  ye 
support  and  maintenance  of  any  other  publick  worship  in  ye  said  town 
or  towns,  wherein  they  shall  inhabit ;  of  which  all  persons  concerned 
are  to  take  notice  accordingly. 

Given  under  my  hand 

Samuel  Shute. 

On  the  records  of  Queen  Anne's  Chapel  the  following  cer- 
tificate is  inscribed  immediately  after  the  governor's  order 
quoted  above  :  — 

Attested  that  this  is  the  true  form  of  the  original  signed  and  granted 
by  His  E.xcellency  Sam'  Shute,  Governor  of  New  England,  for  y*^  pro- 
tection of  y^'  members  of  y''  Church  of  England  in  Newbury  &  for  such 
persons  as  shall  enter  their  names  into  y  Register  Book. 

Matthias  Plant,  Minister, 
Samuel  Bartlet, 
John  Bartlet, 
Joshua  Brown, 
Thomas  Bartlet. 

Under  the  protection  of  this  official  order  the  worshippers 
of    Queen    Anne's   Chapel    were  relieved   from    anxiety  and 


384  OULD   NEIVBUKY 

annoyance,  and  for  many  years  continued  to  enjo}'  their 
rights  and  privileges   undisturbed. 

Standing  rules  and  regulations  were  adopted  for  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  church  at  a  meeting  held  Nov.  28,  1722,  "at 
the  house  of  ye  Rev.  Matthias  Plant,  minister  in  Newbury, 
then  a  lodger  in  Mr.  Samuel  Bartlett's  house."  These  rules 
were  signed  b)-  Samuel  Bartlett,  Abiel  Long,  John  Hartlett, 
Joseph  Annis,  Joshua  Brown,  Skipper  Lunt,  Josiah  Sawyer, 
Benjamin  Long,  Stephen  Rogers,  Ephraim  Davis,  Thomas 
Bartlett,  James  Harbutt,  William  Somands,  John  Eayre, 
Robert  Rogers,  John  Merrill,  William  Morey,  and  Richard 
Williams. 

Mr.  Plant  married  Miss  L}Tlia  Bartlett,  daughter  of  Samuel 
Bartlett,  Dec.  27,  1722.  He  was  highly  respected  b}'  his 
parishioners,  and  the  number  of  communicants  steadily  in- 
creased. His  reports  to  the  secretary  of  the  Society  for 
the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts  give,  in  con- 
nection with  the  early  history  of  the  parish,  some  items  of 
interest  relating  to  the  general  condition  and  occupation  of 
the  people.  Under  date  of  Oct.  25,  1727,  he  writes  as 
follows  :  — 

Si)\ —  I  have  returned  you  Answers  to  several  particulars  relating  to 
the  affairs  of  my  Church. 

1.  The  History  of  Building  the  Church.  X:c.  It  was  erected  for  a 
.Meeting  House  in  171  i.  bv  the  Inhabitants,  about  43  Families  in  num- 
ber: but.  being  opposed  by  a  greater  Body  of  people  within  the  same 
Division  or  Parish  who  had  erected  another  Meeting  House,  they  com- 
plained of  "em  to  the  Justices  of  the  Peace  (who  committed  some  of 
them  to  Prison,  &  others  were  compelled  for  their  safety  to  appeal  to 
the  (iovernor  &  Council,  where  they  met  witli  no  better  treatment)  for 
erecting  a  Meeting  House  contrary  to  Law  (for  according  to  the  Laws 
of  the  Province  the  major  part  appoints  the  place  where  the  Meeting 
House  shall  be  built).  Mr.  ISridger  at  Portsmouth  in  \.  IC.  having  in- 
formation of  the  severity  used  towards  tliese  people,  came  to  Newburv 
&  told  the  lnhal)itants  that,  if  they  would  convert  their  intended  .Meet- 
ing House  into  a  Church,  he  would  engage  'em  protection  from  the 
(Governor.  They  complying  with  his  motion  (after  the  perusal  of  sev- 
eral Church  ISooksi.  he  olitained  their  easement.  The  Salar\-  is  Wceklv 
Contril)Utions  l)y  tlie  .Auditors.  ai)out  /"20  Per  ann'".  The  material 
witli  wliicli  tlie  Church  is  l)uilt  is  wood.  The  dimensions  of  it.  50  ft. 
long  i!v  30  wide,  but  accommodated  witli  no  House  or  (llelie. 


QCEEX AN.VE'S  CHAPEL  AXD  BELLEVILLE  CEMETERY   385 

2.  The  number  of  hearers  were  about  100,  who  at  first  frequented  the 
Church  (for  many  who  cojitributed  towards  building  the  Church  never 
consented  to  convert  it  to  that  use).  Their  condition  of  Fortunes  is  like 
unto  our  ordinary  Farmers  who  rent  ^30  or  _;^4o  p'  ann'".  They  com- 
monly add  some  Trade  to  their  Farming.  In  matters  of  Religion,  Dis- 
senters. Their  Settlements  dispersed,  after  the  manner  of  our  Cottages 
upon  commons,  some  perhaps  having  30  to  60  acres  of  Land.  Some  of 
my  Hearers  live  in  the  adjacent  Towns  from  2  to  6  miles  distance. 
Marblehead  is  the  nearest  Church,  32  miles  remote.  My  constant 
Auditors  are  from  150  to  200  or  thereabouts,  &  daily  increa,se  as  doth 
my  Salary.  Their  Fortunes  are  no  otherwise  improved  than  by  their 
Lands  becoming  more  valuable,  which  is  occasioned  by  peoples  becom- 
ing more  numerous  in  the  Country. 

3.  There  are  three  Meeting  Houses  about  3  miles  distant  in  the  same 
town,  each  frequented  by  500  Auditors,  at  least  to  each  Meeting  House 
one  Dissenting  Teacher.  They  are  supported  by  a  settled  Salarv.  thus 
when  the  major  part  of  a  Town  or  a  Precinct  in  that  Town  call  a 
Teacher,  then  they  agree  with  him  for  an  .Annual  settled  Salary,  which 
remains  so  during  his  life,  which  is  assessed  by  the  Selectmen  in  each 
Town,  according  to  every  Man"s  Estate  in  that  Town  or  Precinct.  & 
collected  bv  the  Constable,  «S:  so  paid  by  him  to  their  several  Teachers. 
I  think  there  are  about  6  Families  of  Quakers  in  the  Town,  tho"  more 
numerous  than  in  the  neighboring  Towns. 

4.  The  School  Ma,sters  in  every  Town  are  annually  chosen  by  the  In- 
habitants of  the  Said  Town.  Their  Salaries  are  then  voted  &  settled  for 
the  year  ensuing. 

5.  Nil. 

6.  Negro  Slaves,  one  of  them  is  desirous  of  Baptism,  but  denied  by 
her  Master,  a  woman  of  wonderful  sense  &  prudent  in  matters  of  equal 
Knowledge  in  Religion  with  most  of  her  sex,  far  excelling  any  of  her 
own  nation  that  ever  yet  I  heard  of. 

Sir,  I  have  been  very  particular  in  returning  a  true  &  e.xact  account 
to  each  particular.  &  have  transmitted  a  Letter  to  you  of  the  same  the 
verv  first  opportunity  which  offered,  and  depend  upon  your  laying  the 
same  before  their  Honors,      t  c,v 

1     tl  11 J  .     Oil, 

Your  most  humble  Servant, 

^LA.TTHI.\s  Plant. 

In  1738,  the  erection  of  a  new  chiu-ch  was  proposed  by 
some  of  the  prominent  and  influential  citizens  of  Newbury, 
and  this  suggestion  led  to  the  building  of  St.  Paul's  Church 
near  the  business  centre  of  the  town.  In  1740,  it  was  ready 
for  use,  although  not  entirely  finished  until  five  years  later. 


3S6  OULD    NEWBURY 

July  I,  1742,  the  General  Court  passed  an  act  providing 
that  "  members  of  the  Church  of  England  shall  be  taxed 
according  to  the  law  of  the  pro\-ince,  but  the  amount  col- 
lected shall  be  delivered  to  the  minister  of  the  church  where 
the  professed  member  regularly  attends  public  worship."  In 
compliance  with  this  law  an  arrangement  was  made  with  Rev. 
Mr.  Plant  to  officiate  at  Queen  Anne's  Chapel  and  also  at  St. 
Paul's  Church.  Under  date  of  July  23,  1742,  he  wrote  to 
the  secretary  of  the  society  in  London  :  "  We  have  erected 
a  fine  new  church  about  three  miles  from  where  I  live.  I 
preach  in  it  e\-ery  other  Sunday."  This  arrangement,  how- 
ever, was  interrupted  by  some  differences  of  opinion  in  re- 
gard to  the  rights  and  duties  of  the  officiating  clergyman. 
Several  years  later  an  amicable  agreement  was  reached  ;  and, 
July  26,  1 75  I,  Rev.  ]\Ir.  Plant  was  legally  instituted  rector  of 
St.  Paul's  Church.  In  1752,  Mr.  Edward  Bass  went  to  P^ng- 
land,  where  he  was  ordained  by  the  Right-Reverend  Bishop 
Sherlock  of  London.  On  his  return  to  Newbury  he  was 
appointed  assistant  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Plant,  who  remained  in 
charge  of  both  churches,  but  on  account  of  ill-health  was  un- 
able to  give  much  attention  to  parochial  work.  Mr.  Plant 
died  April  2,  1753.  Mr.  Bass  continued  to  officiate  at 
Queen  Anne's  Chapel  once  a  month  until  1766. 

The  building,  neglected  and  deserted,  began  to  show  signs 
of  decay  ;  and  ten  or  twelve  years  later,  during  the  prevalence 
of  a  high  wind,  fell  to  the  ground.  Ail  the  church  furniture 
and  other  materials  were  appropriated  in  various  ways.  The 
pews  were  used  for  the  construction  of  a  galler\-  in  an  ad- 
joining meeting-house.  The  Bible  w^as  given  to  a  church  in 
Boscavven,  N.  H.  The  silver  christening-basin  came  into  the 
possession  of  St.  Paul's  Church,  where  it  remained  until 
stolen   by  burglars,  April   2,  1887. 

The  bell,  with  the  inscription,  "  Presented  to  Queen  Anne's 
Chapel  by  the  l-5ishop  of  London,"  hung  for  a  time  in  the 
belfry  of  the  school-house  on  Pillsbiu"}'s  lane,  now  Ashland 
Street.  In  December,  1839,  it  was  (.|uietly  taken  tlown  in 
the  night,  and  secretl}'  disj:)()sed  of. 


QUEEX  ANNE'S  CHAPEL  AND  BELLEVILLE  CEMETERY    387 

"  'Twas  the  eve  before  Christmas,  when  all  through  the  house 
Not  a  creature  was  stirring,  not  even  a  mouse. 
Excepting  three  persons  with  their  coach  with  one  wheel. 
Intending,  of  course,  the  right  bell  to  steal, 
Who,  with  footsteps  c[uite  noiseless,  crept  up  Pillsbury"s  Lane. 
Accomplished  their  purpose,  and  crept  back  again; 
And  from  that  day  to  this  the  compiler  believes 
The  bell  has  been  missing,  and  so  have  the  thieves." 

The  burying  ground  connected  with  Queen  Anne'.s  Chapel 
was  left  undisturbed  and  neglected  for  many  years.  In  1790, 
Deacon  Moses  Atkinson  and  others  interested  themselves  to 
enlarge  and  improve  it.  They  built  the  stone  wall  on  the 
Wesley  Street  side,  and  added  an  acre  or  more  of  land  to  the 
enclosure.  In  1820,  a  bequest  of  Si 00  from  Mr.  Robert 
Dodge,  on  condition  that  a  like  sum  be  raised  by  subscrip- 
tion, was  accepted,  and  the  conditions  complied  with.  The 
amount  received  from  this  source  was  invested  in  land  pur- 
chased of  Amos  Chase  and  John  Jackman,  and  added  to  the 
burying  ground.  In  1843,  an  association  was  formed,  and 
money  was  raised  for  the  purpose  of  building  a  receiving 
tomb  and  laying  out   and  grading  walks. 

In  1 85 1,  Josiah  L.  Hale,  Esq.,  gave  some  additional  land 
to  the  association  ;  and,  under  Chapters  43  and  44  of  the 
Revised  Statutes,  the  organization  was  completed,  and  its 
members  were  legally  incorporated  as  the  Belleville  Cemetery 
Association.  In  1864,  the  area  of  the  cemetery  was  still 
further  enlarged  by  a  gift  of  five  acres  of  land  from  Messrs. 
Josiah  L.  and  Joshua  Hale.  A  few  years  later  a  substantial 
iron  fence  was  erected  on  the  southerly  side  of  the  enclosure, 
along  the  highway  now  known  as  Storey  Avenue  ;  and  in 
1873  a  new  gateway,  suitably  inscribed,  was  presented  to  the 
association  by  Mrs.  Sarah  Little,  wife  of  Mr.  John  IJttle. 

Rev.  Henry  Lucas,  who  died  August  23,  is  said  to  have 
been  buried  Aug.  25,  1720,  under  the  altar  of  Queen  Anne's 
Chapel ;  but  this  statement  cannot  be  verified,  as  there  is  no 
monument  or  tablet  to  mark  the  .spot  where  he  was  laid. 
The  oldest  stone  now  standing  in  the  graveyard  was  erected 


QUEEN AAW'E'S  CHAPEL  AND  BELLEVILLE  CEMETERY    389 

to  the  memory  of  Mrs.  Sarah  Bartlett,  who  died  Jan.  17, 
1727.  From  that  date  until  1 760  the  worshippers  at  Queen 
Anne's  Chapel  buried  their  friends  and  kindred  there. 

Among  the  graves  that  deserve  especial  notice  are  four  or 
five  in  close  proximity  to  each  other,  marked  by  headstones 
bearing  the  following  inscriptions  :  — 


Here  Lies  Buried  The 

Body  of  the  Rev'i 

Mr.   Matthias  Plant 

Born  in  Staffordshier 

In  Great  Briton 

Minister  of  This 

Church  and  Rector 

of  St.  Paul's     OB'^ 

April  2"'i  1753  Etatis  62. 

Here  Lies  Buried 
The  Body  of  Mrs 

Lydia  Plant  The 

Widow  and   Relict 

Of  The  Revi  AP  Plant 

Late  Minister  Of 
This  Church  And 
Rector  Of  St  Pauls 

OB""'  October  8'i> 
1753  Etatis  66. 

Here  Lyes  Buried 

The  Body  Of  AL 

Samvel  Bartlett  Of 

Newbury  Who  Was 

One  Of  The  First 

Founders  Of  This 

Church      He  Died 

May  Ye  i  5=''  1  732 

Being  In  The 

87"^  Year  Of 

His  Age. 


39°  OULD    NEWBURY 

Here  Lies  Buried 

The  Body  Of 

M""  John  Bayley 

Who  Was  Clark  Of 

This  Church  Died 

Dec''  20"'  I  747  In 

The  70"'  Year 

Of  His  Age. 


Here  is  Interrd  The 

Body  Of  Joshua 

Brown  Who  W^as 

One  Of  Ye  First 

Founders  Of  The 

Church  In  Newbury 

He   Died  November 

The  2r'  A.  C.  1 742 

&  In  Ye  71'-'  Year 

Of  His  Age. 


In  the  newer  portion  of  the  cemetery  representatives  of 
the  Atkinson,  Hale,  Carr,  Currier,  Toppan,  Wigglesvvorth, 
and  other  families  living  in  that  neighborhood,  are  buried. 


MAP   OF  THE   WEST   PARISH. 


Auc^  28,  I72Q,  the  inhabitants  of  the  upper  part  of  the 
West  Parish  petitioned  the  General  Court  for  a  division  of 
the  parish.  In  order  to  assist  the  petitioners  in  the  presen- 
tation of  their  case,  an  accurate  map  of  that  portion  of  the 
town  of  Newbury  was  made  by  John  Brown,  surve)'or,  and 
dated  Sept.  15,  1729. 

This  map  is  now  exceedingly  valuable  and  interesting, 
giving,  as  it  does,  the  location  of  every  house  within  the 
limits  of  the  parish  and  the  name  of  every  owner  or  occupant 
at  that  date.  Every  street,  road,  and  lane  is  also  carefully 
laid  down  and  properly  designated.  There  are  several  litho- 
graphic copies  of  the  original  map  in  existence.  One  of 
them  may  be  seen  at  the  rooms  of  the  Historical  Society  in 
the  Public  Library  building,  Newburyport. 

For  the  convenience  of  those  who  wish  to  consult  this  map 
and  compare  it  with  the  printed  text  of  these  pages,  a  copy, 
reduced  in  size,  but  correct  in  all  its  details,  has  been  pre- 
pared for  insertion  here.  In  the  accompanying  list  of  house- 
holders will  be  found  the  names  of  many  who  were  identified 
with  the  early  history  of  Newbury.  In  this  list  Queen  Anne's 
Chapel  is  designated  "  The  Church  "  (No.  13).  The  minister 
at  that  time  in  charge  of  the  chapel  was  Rev.  Matthias  Plant 
(No.  3).  The  mill-house  (No.  25),  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Artichoke  River,  is  now  known  as  Curzon's  mill.  The 
meeting-house  (No.  56),  built  in  1710  at  Pipe  Stave  Hill, 
gave  rise  to  the  prolonged  contest  described  in  the  preceding 
pages  of  this  book;  and  Rev.  John  Tufts  (No.  53)  was  its 
pastor  from    1714  to   1738. 

The  ferries  at  the  mouth  of  Powow  River  and  at  Holt's 
rocks,  near  Rocks  bridge,  are  correctly  located  on  the  map  ; 
and  the  extension  of  High  Street  from  the  Bradford  road 
to  the  Merrimack   River  is  also  plainly  indicated.      This  way, 


Newhl'ry  new  Town. 
Taken    SepV    15,    1729, 
1)}'  John    Krown.   Surv'. 


INHABITANTS   OF  WEST  PARISH,  1729. 


Hereunder  follow  the  names  of  the  Inhabitants  of  this  West 
against  the  names  are  set  against  the  houses  owned  by  y  same. 

48  Joseph  Richardson       95  Samuel  Chase    ^ 

49  Edmund  Oreenleaf       96  Ephraim  Xoyes 

50  Tristram  Greenleaf       97   Joseph  Noyes 

51  Capt.  Jn".  Greenleaf    98  Edward  Sargeant 

52  Joseph  Pike  99  Capt.  Greenleafe 

53  Rev.  Mr.  Jno.  Tufts     100  Joseph  Bailey 


Parish.  &;  the  numbers 


1  John  Bayley 

2  John  Ordway 

3  Revt.  Mr.  Plant 

4  John  Bartlett 

5  Thomas  Bartlett 

6  Seth  Bartlett 

7  Sam'  Bartlett 

8  Da"  Joshua  Brown 

9  John  Bartlett 

10  Thomas  Bartlett 

1 1  Joseph  Moulton 
I  2   .Skipper  Lunt 

13  The  Church 

14  ISenjamin  Long 
I  5  Thomas  Rogers 

16  Stephen  Rogers 

17  Robert  Long 

iS  Thomas  Chase  _ 
19  Joseph  Annis 


54  Francis  Willet 

55  John  Gourdin 

56  Meeting  House 

57  Isaac  Bailey 

58  William  Savor 

59  Tristram  Knight 

60  Timothy  Morse 

61  Jonathan  Sayor 

62  Widow  Savory 

63  Shubael  Long 

64  John  Cottin 

65  Charles  Chase    - 

66  James  Carr 


Archelaus  Woodman  67   John  Chace 


21  Widow  Davis 

22  John  Merril 

23  Josiah  Sayor 

24  David  Merril 

25  Mill  House 

26  Petor  Ordway 

27  Benjamin  Morse 

28  Philip  Morse 

29  Thomas  Brown 

30  John  Sa}or 

31  Peter  Merril 

32  Joshua  Sayor 
22  John  Sayor 

34  John  Cooper 

35  John  Bowley 

36  Ephraim  Davis 

37  John  Emery 

38  Reuben  Emery 

39  Joseph  Lowell 

40  Joseph  Brown 

41  Joseph  Brown 


68  James  Ordway 

69  Benjamin  Merril 

70  John  Worth 

71  Tristram  Coffin 

72  Joseph  Piker 

73  Nathan  Ordway 

74  Abraham  Annis 

75  John  Annis 

76  Sam'  Saver 

77  Joshua  Bailey 

78  Will'"  W:atson 

79  William  Noise 
So  Abel  Merrill 

81  John  Kelby 

82  John  Kelly 
S3  John  Morse 

84  Benj'  Swett 

85  Sam'  March 

86  Joshua  March 

87  Moses  Chase     - 

88  Ezra  Pitsbury 


42  William  Richardson  89  Will"'  Johnson 

43  Thomas  Huse  90  Thomas  Follinsby 

44  Daniel  Cheney  91  William  Follinsby 

45  Daniel  Cheney  92  John  Noyse 

46  Nathaniel  Greenleaf   93  Benjamin  Jaques 

47  Shimuel  Griffin  94  Thomas  Follinsby 


01  Samuel  Plummer 

02  Widow  Hill 
oj_Th  omas_  Hale 

04  Enoch  Little 

05  Christopher  Bartlett 

06  James  Smith 

07  Samuell  Dole 

08  Stephen  Chase  - 

09  John  Hill 

10  Samuell  Hill 

1 1  John  Morrison 

12  Daniel  Morrison 

13  John  Emery 

14  Francis  Follinsby 

15  Samuel  Merril 

16  Richard  Bartlett 

17  Daniel  Bartlett 
iS  Daniel  Bartlett 

19  Benjamin  Morse 

20  NewMeetingHouse 

21  Ezekiel  Hale 

22  James  Brickett 

23  Benj''  Hill 

24  Salomon  Holeman 

25  Joseph  Hill 

26  Will"'  Johnson 

27  Richard  Bartlett 

28  Thomas  Kenney 

29  Stephen  Morse 

30  John  Woodman 

31  Abraham  Chase 

32  Abraham  .Chase  - 
22   William  Morse 

34  Thomas  Noyes 

35  Moses  Pitsbury 

36  John  Carr 

37  David  Chace 

38  John  Chace 

39  James  Brown 

40  Nathan'  Merril 
41 


142 

Samuell  Buckman 

143 

Jonathan  Hog 

144 

Roger  Chase  • 

145 

D=>.  Thomas  Chace 

146 

Andrew  Downor 

147 

Stephen  Sayer 

1 48 

Sam"  Poore 

149 

Hannuniah  Ordway 

150 

Nathaniel  Ordway 

15' 

Sam"  Morse 

152 

John  Emerson 

153 

Thomas  Hale 

154 

Abel  Merril 

155 

-Stephen  Morse 

156 

Abel  Morse 

^57 

Moses  Richardson 

158 

Daniel  Morse 

159 

Daniel  Rawlines 

160 

Truman  March 

161 

Widow  Morse 

162 

Joseph  Williams 

163 

James  Britt 

164  James  Chace 

165   Benjamin  Rawlins 

166 

Stephen  (Jrdway 

167 

Richard  Bartlett 

168 

Joseph  Pilsbury 

169 

170 

Deacon  Caleb  Moodey 

171 

James  Huse 

172 

Wilham  Huse 

173 

John  Huse 

174 

Abel  Huse 

'75 

Abel  Huse 

176 

Sam"  Bartlett 

177 

Benjs  Poore 

178 

Thomas  Rogers 

179 

Thomas  Rogers,  Jr. 

180 

John  Rogers 

iSi 

Robert  Rogers 

182 

Joseph  flood 

183 

George  Little 

184  John  Brown 

185 

Thomas  Brown 

186 

Brown  L^pper  House 

187 

Stephen  Bailey 

394  OULD    XEIVBIJRY 

or  Ferr)-  road,  as  it  was  afterward  called,  was  probably  laid 
out  in  1668.  The  first  volume  of  the  records  of  the  town 
of  Newbury  has  the  following;-  report  from  the  selectmen  of 
the  town  :  — 

According  to  our  commission  from  the  town.  March  8"^  1665.  we 
have  laid  out  a  country  way  unto  Salisbury  New  towne  of  four  Rod 
broad,  begining  at  Merrimack  River  Side,  running  through  Christopher 
Bartlett's  land  sixty  rods  and  likewise  through  Archelaus  Woodman's 
land.  Sixteen  Rod  at  the  North  end  of  Caleb  Moody's  land  and  through 
Robert  Coker's  land  about  17  or  rS  Rods.  Richard   Kxkjht 

John   Kxight 
Rkhakd   Dole 
being  selectmen  did  give  order  to  have  this  recorded. 

per  AxTHOxv   Somerhv. 
Dece.mber  21,  1668. 

This  road  was  rendered  necessary  by  the  grant  of  a  new 
ferry  near  the  mouth  of  the  Powow  River.  May  27,  1668,  the 
General  Court, 

In  ans''  to  the  petition  of  the  inhabitants  of  Salisbury.'  new  toune. 
humbly  desiring  the  favo""  of  this  court  that  their  toune  may  lie  named 
Emesl:)urv.  the  Court  grants  their  request. 

In  a  further  answer  to  their  request  to  haue  liberty  granted  them  to 
keepe  a  ferry  ouer  Merremack  Riuer,  about  M''  Cioodwin's  house,  the 
Court  judgeth  it  meet  to  grant  that  there  shall  be  a  ferry  kept  as  is 
desired,  &  leaue  it  to  the  next  Court  of  that  county  to  appoint  lioth 
the  person  that  is  to  keepe  it  &  also  to  appoint  the  price. 

October  13  of  that  year  Edward  Goodwin  was  duly  ap- 
pointed ferryman.  In  1669,  George  Carr  applied  to  the  Gen- 
eral Coiut  for  liberty  to  kee])  this  new  ferr)-  in  accordance 
with  the  agreement  made  and  provided  when  the  floating 
britlge  at  Carr's  Island  was  built.  His  recjuest  was  granted; 
and  the  ferry  remained  inider  his  care  and  control  until  his 
death,  April  4,  1682.  It  was  afterward  kept  and  maintainetl 
by  the  heirs  of  (ieorge  Garr  luitil  l-"eb.  8,  1695-6,  when 
Richard  Carr  soUl  to  Captain  John  March,  of  Xewbury. 
•'  i'he  r\MTy  commonl)'  known  b\-  }c  name  of  Almeslnn}' 
ferr\-   together   with   all   _\-e   pri\-eleges   to  }'c  same  belonging. 


MAP    OF    THE    WEST  PARISH  395 

which  s'd  Ferry  was  by  ye  Town  of  Almesbury  Granted  to 
my  Honoured  Father,  Mr.  George  Carr,  late  of  Salisbury, 
deceased,  and  confirmed  by  ye  General  Court,  allsoe  ye  ferry 
boats,  allsoe  a  freehold  commonage  or  common  right  in  ye 
Township  of  Almesbury,  as  my  said  Father,  Mr.  George 
Carr,  was  a  free  Commoner  in  s'd  Towne  as  ye  Towne  Booke 
will  make  appeer "  (Essex  Deeds,  Ipswich  Series,  book  2, 
page    160.) 

Humphrey  Hook,  who  married  Judith,  daughter  of  Captain 
John  March,  was  placed  in  charge  of  the  ferry,  which  in 
process  of  time  came  to  be  known  as  "Hook's  Ferry."  He 
continued  to  serve  as  ferryman  until  his  death  in  1754.  He 
was  followed  by  his  grandson  Humphrey  Currier,  and  other 
members  of  his  family,  until  the  Essex-Merrimack  bridge 
was  opened  to  the  public  in    1792. 

The  ferry  at  Holt's  rocks,  afterward  called  Swett's  ferry, 
was  located  where  the  present  Rocks  bridge  now  stands. 
March  26,  1694,  the  town  of  Newbury  "granted  John  Kelley, 
senior,  permission  to  keep  a  ferry  over  the  Merrimack  at 
Holts  Rocks,  in  the  place  where  he  now  dwelleth,  ferriage 
six  pence  for  horse  and  man,  two  pence  for  single  man." 
Coffin,  in  his  History  of  Newbury,  says,  "Sept.  25,  171 1, 
John  Swett  was  licensed  by  the  Court  to  keep  the  ferry  at 
Holt's  rocks.  Fare,  two  pence  for  a  man  and  four  pence  for 
a  horse."  When  the  map  of  the  West  Parish  was  drawn, 
John  Swett  was  in  charge  of  this  ferry,  and  resided  on  the 
north  side  of  the  river.  The  older  ferr}^  established  at 
Carr's  Island  in  1644,  does  not  appear  on  the  map,  as  it  was 
located  some  distance  beyond  the  limits  of  the  parish. 

Jan.  6,  1 73 1,  the  West  Parish  consented  to  the  proposed 
division.  The  heavy  clotted  line  extending  through  Whit 
Street  or  Merrill's  lane.  Downer's  lane,  the  Middle  road,  and 
thence  through  Bailey's  lane  to  the  Merrimack  River,  was 
evidently  the  line  agreed  upon. 

P'eb.  22,  1 73  I,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  set  off  the 
new  parish,  the  fourth  in  Newbury;  and  March  29,  1731, 
a  vote  to  petition  the  General  Court  to  confirm  the  action  of 
the  parish  was  unanimously  adopted. 


ST.  PAUL'S  CHURCH. 


King's  Chapel,  erected  in  Boston  in  the  year  1688,  was 
the  first  Episcopal  church  in  Massachusetts  ;  and  Oueen 
Anne's  Chapel,  built   at    Newbury   in    171  i,  was  the  second. 

For  many  years  the  legally  constituted  authorities  of  the 
town  and  State  endeavored  to  suppress  these  churches.  A 
brief  summary  of  the  contest  that  finally  resulted  in  the 
building  of  Queen  Anne's  Chapel  at  the  Plains  will  be  found 
on  the  preceding  pages  of  this  book.  In  face  of  this  fierce 
opposition  the  growth  of  the  church  in  Newbury  was  neces- 
sarily slow.  At  length,  in  1722,  Samuel  Shute,  then  gov- 
ernor of  the  province,  issued  a  proclamation  ordering  that  all 
persons  who  should  declare  themseh-es  members  of  the 
Established  Church  should  be  allowed  to  worship  according 
to  the  Episcopal  form  of  service,  and  should  not  be  taxed  for 
the  support  or  maintenance  of  public  worship  elsewhere. 
Under  this  proclamation  the  inhabitants  of  Newbury  enjoyed 
their  religious  rights  and  liberties  undisturbed,  and  the 
communicants  at  Oueen  Anne's  Chaj^el  rapidly  increased  in 
number. 

A  few  years  later  a  larger  and  more  con\enient  place  of 
worship  was  desired  by  those  members  of  the  congregation 
living  near  the  water  side,  which  finally  led  to  the  building 
of  St.  Paul's  Church  in  1738,  on  the  corner  of  High  Street 
and  Ordway's  lane  (now  Market  Street). 

Rev.  Matthias  Plant,  then  minister  at  Oueen  Anne's 
Chapel,  states  in  a  letter  to  Rev.  Dr.  Pearcroft,  secretary 
of  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  (josi)el  in  l^'oreign 
Parts,  that  Joseph  Atkins,  I^sc|..  had  pro]i()sed  to  him  the 
building  of  a  new  church  at  the  water  side.  To  this  ]ilan 
Mr.  IMant  ga\e  his  consent,  and  subscribed  the  sum  of  ^£,50. 
Other  subscribers  were  Jose])h  .Atkins,  Patrick  'I'rac}',  Michael 


ST.   PAUL'S   CHURCH  397 

Dalton,  Benjamin  Harris,  Joseph  Greenleaf,  Daniel  Marquand, 
Anthony  Gwynn,  and  others. 

As  soon  as  the  necessary  arrangements  could  be  completed, 
a  suitable  lot  of  land  was  selected,  and  work  upon  the  new 
church  begun.  The  building,  however,  was  not  finished 
and  ready  for  public  worship  until   near  the  close  of    1740. 

Feb.  3,  1 741,  Joseph  Atkins,  Esq.,  of  Newbury,  gave  to 
the  wardens  and  vestrymen  of  St.  Paul's  Church  a  deed  of 
land  on  "  Queen  Street,  or  Ordway's  Lane,"  with  a  building 
already  erected  thereon,  "upon  condition  always  that  the 
said  edifice  or  building  called  St.  Paul's  Church  and  the  land 
aforesaid  whereon  it  stands  shall  henceforth  and  forever  here- 
after be  improved  and  made  use  of  for  the  Publick  worship  of 
God  according  to  ye  Rubrick  of  ye  Common  Prayer  Book 
used  by  the  Church  of  England,  &c."  *  (Esse.x  Deeds,  book 
84,  page  92). 

After  a  prolonged  correspondence  with  the  Society  for 
the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,  in  regard  to 
the  duties  and  salary  of  the  minister  of  St.  Paul's  Church, 
the  following  statement  was  agreed  upon,  signed,  and  com- 
municated to  Mr.  Plant :  — 

Newbury,  Feb.  3,  1742. 

We  the  subscribers,  members  of  the  New  Church  in  Newbury,  called 
by  the  name  of  St.  Paul's  church,  desiring  the  worship  of  God  accord- 
ing to  the  Rubric  of  the  Church  of  England,  do  desire  and  do  make 
ch'oice  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Matthias  Plant  as  our  Minister  to  officiate  and 
carry  on  this  said  worship  in  said  church  of  St.  Paul's,  in  Newbury 
aforesaid,—  in  witness  whereof  we  have  hereunto  set  our  hands  this  day 
and  year  above  written.  Michael  Dalton, 

Edmund  Cottle, 

CJuircJi  Wardens. 

In  a  letter  to  Rev.  Dr.  Bearcroft,  London,  England,  under 
date  of  July  23,  1742,  Mr.  Plant  says  :  — 

*Jan  12  .6g-3,  James  Ordway,  Sr.,  conveyed  to  his  son,  James  ( )rdway,  Jr.,  a  dwelling- 
house,  barn,  malt-house,  shop,  and  four  acres  of  land  extending  from  the  country  road  to  the  road 
near  Merrimack  River  (see  map,  page  ..9),  and  bounded  on  the  southeast  by  Ordway  s  Lane 
(Essex  Deeds,  book  10,  leaf  12). 

James  Ordway,  Jr.,  in  his  will,  dated  Oct.  21,  172.,  and  proved  May  7,  1722,  gave  the  upper 
half  of  this  lot  of  land  to  his  son  Moses,  and  the  lower  half,  with  the  buildings  thereon,  to  his  son 

"'"'"May  .3,  .73S,  Moses  Ordway  sold  to  Joseph  Atkins  a  portion  of  this  land  bounded  by  the 
country  road  and  Ordway's  lane  (Essex  Deeds,  book  76,  leaf  192). 


398  OULD   XEIVBURY 

We  liave  erected  a  fine  new  churcli  about  three  miles  from  where  1 
live.      I  preach  in  it  every  other  Sunda}-. 

This  arranj^cnient,  however,  was  interrupted  by  the  attemjit 
on  the  part  of  some  members  of  tlie  congregation  to  retain 
control  of  the  pulpit,  and  to  invite,  as  opportunity  occurred, 
other  ministers  to  officiate  in  the  church.  Mr.  Plant  seriously 
objected  to  this  interference  with  his  rights  and  privileges, 
and  finally  decided  to  withdraw  from  the  contest,  and  devote 
his  whole  time  and  attention  to  Queen  Anne's  Chapel. 

In  consequence  of  this  struggle  between  the  clergy  and 
the  laity,  St.  Paul's  Church  was  left  without  a  settled  minis- 
ter for  nearly  nine  years,  though  vigorous  efforts  were  made 
to  provide  one.  During  that  time  services  were  occasionally 
held  in  the  unfinished  edifice. 

Michael  Dalton  was  evidently  the  first  treasurer.  In  his 
account  he  credits  the  church  with  contributions  received 
Feb.  14  and  Nov.  22,  1741,  and  for  similar  receipts  in  May, 
June,  July,  August,  and  October,  1742.  He  also  charges 
July  26,  1742,  ^7  cash  paid  Mr.  Plant  for  seven  Sundays' 
service,  and  £,\  in  August  and  Ji^  in  October  for  similar 
service. 

There  is  no  record  of  the  election  of  wardens  and  vestrymen 
previous  to  1743.  During  the  next  ten  years  only  a  few 
votes  of  importance  were  recorded,  though  it  is  evident 
that  meetings  were  frequently  held  for  the  choice  of  officers 
and  the  transaction  of  other  business.  From  1743  to  1753, 
the  following-named  persons  were  elected  :  — 

]\'a)dcns  for   1  743. 
Joseph   Atkins,    Esq.,  lienjaniin    Harris. 

]'cst)yiiicii  for   1  743. 

Capt.  John   Crocker.  Capt.   James   Simmons. 

Capt.   Thomas  Tannatt.  Mr.   Witter   Cummings. 

Mr.    'I'hos.    Wo()dl)ridge.  Mr.    William   Atkins. 

Mr.    Edmund   Cottle,  Mr.    William   Jenkins. 

Capt.    Michael   Dalton.  Cajjt.    Patrick   'I'racy. 

Mr.   Josepli  Cottle. 


ST.   PACnS    CHCRCH  399 

There  is  no  record  for  the  year  1 744. 

Wardens  for   i  745. 
Capt.    Daniel   Marquand.  Capt.   Anthony  (Iwin. 

I'cstryiiien  for  1745. 

Joseph   Atkins.   Esq.,  Mr.   Edmund   Cottle, 

Capt.  John  Crocker,  Mr.   Jos.   Cottle, 

Capt.   Thomas  Tannatt,  Capt.    Michael    Ualton, 

Mr.   Thomas   Woodbridge.  Capt.    Patrick  Tracy. 

Wardens  for   1746. 
Capt.   Anthony  Gwynn,  Capt.   Thomas  Tannatt. 

Vi-sfrynicn  for   1746. 

Daniel   Marquand.  Joseph   Cottle. 

Joseph   Atkins,   Esq.,  Benjamin   Harris. 

Capt.   John   Crocker,  Capt.   Michael   Dalton. 

Thomas  Woodbridge,  Capt.   Patrick  Tracy, 

Edmund   Cottle,  Ambrose   Davis. 

Wardens  for  i  747. 
Capt.   Thos.   Tannatt.  Capt.    John  Crocker. 

]'estryinen  for    1747. 

Anthony  Gwynn.  Witter   Cummings, 

Joseph  Atkins,   Esq..  William  Atkins,   Esq., 

Thomas  Woodbridge,  Ambrose   Davis, 

Capt.   Michael   Dalton,  Joseph   Cottle. 

Benjamin   Harris.  William  Jenkins. 

Capt.    Patrick  Tracy. 

Jl'ardens  for   i  74<S. 
John   Crocker,  William   Atkins,  Esq. 

I'estrynien  for   1748. 

Joseph   Atkins,   Esq.,  Anthony  Gwynn, 

Thomas  Tannatt,  Witter  Cummings, 

Michael   Dalton.  Robert   Roberts, 

Benjamin   Harris,  Ambrose   Davis, 

Daniel   Marquand.  Thomas  Woodbridge. 


400  OULD   NEWBURY 

Wardens  for   1749. 
William    Atkins,  Thomas   Woodbridge. 

I'estryiiicn  for  1749. 

Joseph   Atkins.   Esq.,  Anthony   Gwynn, 

Thomas  Tannatt,  Witter  Cummings, 

Michael   Ualton,  Robert  Roberts, 

Benj.    Harris,  Ambrose   Davis, 

Daniel  Marquand,  William  Jenkins. 

Wardens  for   1750. 
William   Jaques,  Ambrose   Davis. 

Vestiyrnen  for  i  750. 

Joseph  Atkins,  Esq.,  Benj.    Harris, 

Capt.   Crocker,  Thos.  Woodbridge, 

Capt.   Gwynn,  Robert  Roberts, 

Capt.   Tannatt,  William   Atkins, 

Capt.   Dalton,  Joseph  Cottle, 

Wardens  for  i  751. 
William  Jaques,  Ambrose  Davis. 

The  vestrymen  for  1751  were  the  same  as  for  the  year 
1750. 

There  is  no  record  of  the  election  of  wardens  and  vestry- 
men for  the  year  1752  ;  but  December  30  W.  Jaques  and 
Ambrose  Davis,  wardens,  notify  the  proprietors  of  St,  Paul's 
Church  to  meet  on  the  first  day  of  January  ne.xt  "to  a^^ree 
for  building"  a  gallery  in  said  Church  and  a  Porch  at  the  front 
Door." 

William  Atkins  and  William  Jaques  were  chosen  wardens, 
and  the  following  named  persons  were  elected 

Vestry  men  for  1753. 

Joseph   Atkins,    Esq.,  Edmund   Cottle, 

Michael   Dalton,  Thom~  Woodbridge, 

Benj'"   Harris,  Joseph   Cottle, 

John   Crocker,  Dudley   Atkins, 

Anthony   (iwvnn,  William   Jenkins. 


ST.   FACTS   CHURCH  401 

In  the  month  of  April,  1743,  Commissary  Price*  jM-eached 
in  the  church,  and  a  collection  of  ^,7  6y.  6^/.  was  taken  up  in 
aid  of  the  funds  previously  subscribed  for  the  purpose  of 
building  twenty-eight  pews  in  the  body  of  the  church.  At 
a  meeting  of  the  wardens  and  vestrymen  held  May  i,  1744,  a 
contract  was  made  with  Eben  and  Nathan  Little  to  build  the 
wall  pews  and  pulpit  for  ^100,  and  an  agreement  was  made 
with  Ephraim  Blaisdell  to  plaster  the  walls  and  ceiling  for  ;^8o. 

Rev.  Mr.  Plant,  in  a  letter  to  Rev.  Dr.  Bearcroft,  of 
London,   under  date  of  July    10,    1745,   says:  — 

I  called  a  meeting  at  the  new  church,  delivered  them  the  Bible  and 
Common  Prayer  Book  sent  out  by  the  Society  for  that  church,  and  a 
record  was  made  of  it  in  their  book,  signed  Anthony  Gwynn.  Capt. 
Marquand  was  absent. 

The  following  extract  from  the  church  records  confirms 
the  statement  made  in  the  above  letter  to  Dr.  Bearcroft  :  — 

Xewburv,  July  ID.  1745. 

This  day  received  from  the  Society  a  folio  Bible  and  Common 
prayer  book  by  the  Hands  of  the  Rev.   Mr.   Matthias  Plant. 

AXTHOXV    GWVXN. 

In  1749,  another  attempt  was  made  to  reconcile  the  con- 
flicting views  of  Rev.  Mr.  Plant  and  the  members  of  St. 
Paul's  Church.  The  following  letter,  copied  in  full  from  the 
records  of  the  church,  briefly  outlines  the  plan  of  settlement 
finally  adopted  :  — 

„     ,  f,.  NE^yBURV,  Janu'>  3P'  1749. 

Rev^  Sir,  ■'  -^  ^ 

We  rec"''  your  letter  dated  ye  26"'  Jany  Inst,  with  a  copy  of  letter  In- 
closed from  ye  Rey''  Dr.  Philip  Bearcroft,  in  which  you  may  take  notice 
that  the  said  letter  is  in  reference  to  a  Petition  from  the  Church  Wardens 
of  St.  Paul's  Church  in  this  town  to  the  Rev''  and  Ven'''''  Society,  and 
in  said  Petition  the  Church  Wardens  of  said  Church  agreed  to  put  an 
End  to  the  Difference  that  has  for  a  long  time  been  between  us,  which 
is  in  this  way:  —  viz:   that   we  would    Induct  you  into  said  Church  and 

*  Rev.  Roger  Price  was  appointed  commissary  or  superintendent  of  Episcopal  churches  in 
New  England  by  the  Lord  Bishop  of  London  in  the  year  1730.  He  was  also  appointed  minister 
at  King's  Chapel,  Boston,  and  ser\ed  in  that  capaciti,-  until  Nov.  21,  1746,  when  he  resigned  that 
office,  and  sailed  for  England  in  June,  1747.  He  returned  to  Boston  in  174S,  and  afterward  resided 
for  some  years  at  Hopkinton,  Mass. 


402  OULD   NEWBURY 

pay  unto  the  .gentleman  that  should  Ije  sent  to  England  to  take  Holy 
orders  for  said  Church.  Twenty  i)ounds  sterl-  per  annum  &  pay  his 
House  rent. 

ReV'  Sir.  this  is  to  acquaint  you  that  we  are  ready  to  comply  with 
the  said  proposals,  and  hope  that  you  will  also  comply  with  the  ReV' 
&  ^'en''l^■  Society's  request  so  strongly  recommended  to  you,  in  provid- 
ing the  s'''  Church  with  a  proper  gentleman  as  your  assistant,  as  soon 
as  possible,  that  there  may  l)e  no  Time  lost  &  that  the  unhappy  dispute 
between  us  may  have  an  end  c\:  Live  in  Unity  &  Godly  Love,  pray  sir 
to  give  us  an  Answer  ^:  set  the  Time  when  we  shall  attend  your  Induc- 
tion.    We  are,  Rev'  Sir. 

Your  Most  obedient  &  Humble  Serv'- 

Wm    Atkixs  )  Church  Wardens 

\        of  St.  Paul's 
Thomas  Woodbridge  \     [^^  A^eivbury. 

Rev.  Mr.  Plant  adds  in  his  own  handwriting  the  following 
memorandum  :  — 

I  receiv'i  this  Letter  on  Feb.  3,  1749,  t>y  ^'"  Atkins.  Esq.,  boy  Dum- 
mer.  &  he  s''  he  must  have  a  receipt  from  me  to  carry  back  to  show  them 
that  I  had  received  it. 

After  a  long  and  serious  delay  and  frecjuent  consultations 
with  Rev.  Dr.  Cutler  and  Rev.  Dr.  Caner,  of  Boston,  the 
details  of  the  proposed  agreement  were  satisfactorily  adjusted  ; 
and  June  24,  1751,  Rev.  Mr.  Plant  was  formally  inducted 
into  the  rectorship  of   St.   Paul's   Church. 

The  following  letter  to  Rev.  Dr.  Bearcroft,  secretary  of 
the  society  in  PLngland,  gives  the  terms  of  this  agreement  :  — 

December  23,  i  751 . 

Rev.  Dr ; —  In  a  letter  I  received  from  you  bearing  date  of  October 
21,  1747,  sent  bv  Mr.  (iilchrist,  and  received  by  me  March  25,  174S.  1 
am  there  recommended,  upon  my  being  the  Chief  Minister  of  the  whole 
pari.sh  of  Newbury,  to  make  good  my  promise  of  paying  annually  /'20 
sterling  to  some  voimg  candidate,  when  admitted  into  holy  orders,  to  be 
my  assistant  at  St.  Paul's  Church  in  Newbury.  The  Proprietors  having 
given  me  Induction  into  said  church  June  24.  I.  to  conijily  with  the 
Society's  directions,  have  made  choice  of  Mr.  Edward  Hass.  the  bearer 
hereof,  to  assist  me  in  the  said  office,  when  admitted  into  orders,  jiromis- 
ing  to  pay  Mr.  IJass  annually  ^20  sterling,  according  to  the  true  purport 
and  meaning  of  the  .Society's  directions  in  that  affair:  humbly  praying 
the  .Society  to   recommend    Mr.    11.    to  niv  Ld.    lip.   to   be   admitted    into 


Sr.   PAUL'S   CHURCH  4^3 

orders,  that  he  may  as  soon  as  possible  return  to  my  assistance,  who 
now  labor  under  a  weak  disposition.  Mr.  B.  came  to  me  so  well  recom- 
mended that  1  verily  believe  he  will  be  of  service  in  the  church  and  espe- 

ciallv  in  Newbury,  the  place  desiijned  for  his  residence. 

M.  Plant. 

By  this  arrangement  the  chapel  at  the  plains  and  the 
church  at  the  water  side,  with  separate  organizations  for  the 
control  of  temporal  affairs,  were  placed  under  the  same  cleri- 
cal authority.  The  claims  of  Rev.  Mr.  Plant  were  duly  ac- 
knowledged and  recognized,  and  the  territorial  limits  of  the 
parish  were  preserved  intact.  Fifteen  years  later  services 
at  the  plains  were  discontinued  ;  but  the  church  at  the  water 
side,  sustained  and  supported  by  some  of  the  most  prominent 
citizens  of  the  town,  continued  its  work  through  the  trouble- 
some times  of  the  Revolution,  and  still  retains  its  name  and 
place  in  the  diocese  of  Massachusetts. 

Rev.  Mr.  Plant  came  to  Newbury  in  1722  ;  and  December 
27th  of  that  year  he  married  Lydia  Bartlett,  daughter  of 
Samuel  Bartlett.  A  few  years  later,  he  purchased  a  lot 
of  land  on  the  road  leading  to  Amesbury  ferry  and  built  a 
house  thereon,  which  he  owned  and  occupied  for  many  years. 
This  house  was  removed  forty  or  fifty  years  ago  ;  but  the  out- 
lines of  the  cellar  are  still  visible,  and  the  well  that  supplied 
the  household  with  water  is  still  in  good  order  and  condition. 
From  time  to  time  Mr.  Plant  added  to  his  real  estate  in 
that  neighborhood,  extending  his  possessions  from  the  ferry 
road  to  the  Merrimack  River,  and  including  Deer  Island, 
which  he  purchased  only  two  months  previous  to  his  death. 

Rev.  Fdward  Bass  returned  from  England  in  the  fall  of 
1752,  and  was  immediately  appointed  assistant  minister  at 
St.  Paul's  Church.  Rev.  Mr.  Plant,  who  was  then  in  feeble 
health,  died  April  2,  1753. 

Right-Rev.  Edward  Bass,  D.  D.,  Bishop  of  Massachusetts 
and  Rhode  Island,  was  born  in  Dorchester  Nov.  23,  1726. 
He  graduated  at  Harvard  College  in  1744,  and  was  admitted 
to  holy  orders  by  Right-Rev.  Thomas  Sherlock,  D.  D.,  Bishop 
of  London,  in  his  chapel  at  Fulham,  May  24,  1752.  He 
entered   upon   his   duties  as  assistant   minister   in  St.    Paul's 


404  OULD   NEWBURY 

Church  in  the  month  of  October  or  November,  1752,  and 
recorded  the  death  and  burial  of  Rev.  Mr.  Plant  in  the  month 
of  April  following". 

There  was  probably  no  definite  action  taken  by  the  pari.sh 
in  regard  to  the  additional  duties  the  new  minister  was  un- 
expectedly called  upon  to  perform.  At  all  events  the  records 
are  silent  on  that  subject.  (_)n  the  first  day  of  January,  1753, 
they  made  choice  of  Captain  Michael  Dalton,  Captain  Daniel 
Marquand,  Mr.  Joseph  Cottle,  Captain  Anthony  Gwynn,  and 
William  Atkins,  Esq.,  to  agree  with  some  suitable  person  or 
persons  to  build  a  porch  and  front  gallery  to  said  church  ;  and 
Dec.  20,  1753,  a  meeting  was  held  to  levy  a  tax  on  the  pews  to 
meet  the  expenses  incurred  by  the  wardens  and  vestrymen. 
There  is  no  mention  of  other  important  questions  that  must 
have  been  considered  at  that  time  or  soon  after,  and  for  the  next 
five  years  only  a  few  items  of  special  interest  are  recorded. 

In  1756,  an  organ  was  purchased  of  Charles  Apthorp,  Esq., 
treasurer  of  King's  Chapel,  Boston.  The  names  of  the  con- 
tributors to  the  fund  raised  to  meet  this  expenditure  are 
given  in  the  record  as  follows  :  — 

Capt.  Daniel  Marcjuand ^21      o     o 

Rev.  Mr.  Bass 20     o     o 

Joseph  Atkins,  Esq 50     o     o 

Mr.  Benjamin  Harris 50     o     o 

Capt.  Michael  Dalton 50     o     o 

Mr.  Dudley  Atkins        20     o     o 

William  Atkins,  Esq 30     o     o 

Mr.  Joseph  Cottle 30     o     o 

Daniel  Gibbs,  Esq.  &  one  more 3250 

Capt.  Thomas  Beck 4100 

Capt.   Anthony  Gwynn 30     9     4 

Mr.  Thomas  Woodbridge 1800 

William  Jenkins 382 

Additional  Subscriptions  by 

Benjamin  Harris 30     o     o 

Michael  Dalton 30     o     o 

Jos.  Cottle 16100 

Edmund  Cottle 850 

Balance  paid  liy  Micliael   Dalton  to  make  up  deficit  ...  55    12     6 

/500     o     o 


ST.   PAUUS    CHURCH  405 

This  organ  was  imported  by  Thomas  Brattle,  of  Boston. 
It  was  the  first  one  brought  to  New  England,  and  was  re- 
garded by  the  devout  men  of  that  time  with  grave  suspicion. 
Thomas  Brattle  died  May  i8,  1713-  I"  his  will,  he  makes 
the  following  bequest  :  — 

I  srive.  dedicate  and  Devote  my  organ  to  the  praise  and  glory  of  (iod 
in  tl^e  s'l  Church  (in  Brattle  Square),  if  they  shall  accept  thereof  and 
within  a  year  after  my  decease  procure  a  sober  person  that  can  play 
skillfully  thereon  with  a  loud  noise.  Otherwise  to  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land in  this  towne  on  y*-  same  terms  and  conditions;  and  on  their  non- 
acceptance  or  discontinuance  as  before  I  give  the  Same  to  my  nephew 
William  Brattle. 

In  the  record  of  the  Brattle  Square  Church,  Boston,  under 
date  of  July  24,  171  3,  is  the  following  allusion  to  this  gift  :  — 

The  Church,  with  all  possible  respect  to  the  memory  of  our  deceased 
Friend  and  Benefactor,  Voted,  that  they  did  not  think  it  proper  to  use 
the  same  in  the  publick  worship  of  Ciod. 

At  a  meeting  held  in  King's  Chapel  Aug.  3,  171 3,  the 
members  of  that  society  voted  to  accept  the  gift  of  Mr. 
Thomas  Brattle,  and  March  2,  1713-14.  they  "voted  that  the 
organ  be  forthwith  put  up." 

"it  was  in  use  in  King's  Chapel  on  Sundays  and  holy  days 
until  1756,  when  it  was  purchased,  as  above  stated,  by  the 
members  of  St.  Paul's  Church,  Newburyport.  In  1836,  it 
was  sold  to  St.  John's  Church,  Portsmouth,  N.  H.,  where  it 
is  now  in  use  at  chapel  services  and  in  the  Sunday  school. 

In  1769,  the  proprietors  of  St.  Paul's  Church  "voted  that 
M^  Bass  has  liberty  agreeably  to  his  Petition  to  Build  a  Vestry 
Room  on  the  North  side  of  the  Church  behind  the  Pulpit,  to 
have  a  door  to  go  out  thro'   the   Pew  now  improved  by  Mrs. 

Barret,  &c." 

At  the  regular  Easter  meeting,  held  April   i,  1771,  it  was 
voted  "  to  address  &  solicit  the  Governor  to  grant  the  Plate 
given  by  his  Majesty  for  the  use  of  s'd  Church." 
^  Thomas   Hutchinson  was  appomted  governor  of  the  prov- 
ince of    Massachusetts   Bay  in  the  month  of  March,    1771. 


4o6  OULD   NEIVBURY 

He  received  from  King  (ieorge  III.  a  service  of  plate  and 
pulpit  furniture,  which  he  presented  to  King's  Chapel,  lk)ston, 
taking  in  exchange  the  old  communion  service.  A  portion 
of  this  old  service  was  given  to  Christ's  Church,  Cambridge  ; 
and  a  flagon  inscribed  with  the  words,  "  The  gift  of  K. 
William  &  p.  Mary  to  ye  Rev''  Saml  Myles  for  the  use  of 
their  Mai'""  Chappel  in  N.  England,  1694,"  and  a  chalice 
bearing  this  inscription,  "  Kx  dono  Johannis  Milles  1693," 
were  sent  to  St.  Paul's  Church,  Newburyport. 

At  this  date  the  church  was  in  possession  of  a  sih'er  chris- 
tening basin,  fifteen  inches  in  diameter,  marked  I.  C,  and 
the  letters  k. ''s.  engraved  on  the  rim.  This  basin  was  the 
gift  of  Richard  Brown,  merchant,  to  Queen  Anne's  Chapel,  as 
appears  from  the  following  clause  in  his  will,  dated  Sept.  16, 
1730,  and  proved  April  2,  1735  :  — 

To  the  Church  of  Christ  in  Newbury  to  which  I  belong  my  large 
silver  Bason  to  be  and  remain  unto  ye  said  Church  for  ye  baptiseing  of 
children  forever. 

In  the  probate  office  at  Salem  a  receipt  in  the  handwrit- 
ing" of  Rev.  Matthias  Plant  reads  as  follows  :  — 

o 

Newbury,  Sept.  9"'.  1740. 

Then  received  from  Joseph  Gerrish,  Esq.,  &  ')s\x~  Mary  Marquand. 
.Administrator  &  Administratri.x  to  Rich'':  I5rown  of  Newbury,  (ient., 
Dec'',  a  Large  Silver  Bason  weighing  thirty  seven  ounces  of  silver.  A 
Legacy  given  to  y"^  Church  of  England  in  Newbury  by  y-'  aforsd  M'' 
Brown:  The  whicli  Silver  Bason  1  receive  for  the  use  of  s''  Church,  as 
witness  my  Hand.  AIatts:    Pl.ant  : 

Minister  of  ye  church. 
])rized  at  24/6  per  oz.      ^44.8. 

A  credence  paten,  witli  rich  repousse  border,  represent- 
ing a  stag  hunt,  also  formed  a  pait  of  the  coiumunion  plate 
of  .St.  Paul's  Church  a  few  \-eai-s  later,  and  was  intended  to 
|-emind  the  eonuuunicant  of  the  words  ol  the  Psalmist  :  "As 
the  hart  panteth  after  the  water-brooks,  so  longeth  my  soul 
after  thee,   ()   (iod."       The   maker    of    this    paten      '' ''      was 


ST.   PAUUS   CHURCH  407 

registered  at  Goldsmith's  Hall,  London,  in  1674.  It  bore 
,the  following  inscription  :  "  The  gift  of  Dudley  A.  Tyng, 
Esq.,  to  St.  Paul's  Church,  October,  1800." 

The  articles  above  described,  with  others  of  a  more  recent 
make,  were  stolen  from  the  safe  in  the  rector's  study,  in  the 
rear  of  the  church,  April  2,  1887.  For  a  more  particular 
account  of  these  ancient  specimens  of  the  silver  worker's  art 
the  reader  is  referred  to  a  book,  entitled  "  Old  Plate,"  by 
J.  H.  Buck,  published   in    1888,  pages    190  and    199. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  Revolutionary  War  the  peace  and 
quiet  of  the  church  was  greatly  disturbed  by  the  comments 
and  criticisms  of  those  who  denounced  in  unmeasured  terms 
everything  appertaining  to  royalty.  The  exigencies  of  the 
occasion  required  prompt  action  ;  and  the  wardens  and  vestry- 
men, at  a  meeting  held  July  16,  1776,  addressed  the  following 
letter  to  their  rector,  Rev.  P^dward  Bass  :  — 

Re7'\i  Sir;  — 

The  Representatives  of  the  United  Colonies  in  America,  having  in 
Congress  declared  s"d  colonies  free  and  Independent  States,  and  dis- 
avowed all  Allegiance  to  the  King  of  Britain  and  the  service  of  the 
Church  to  which  we  belong,  prescribing  certain  prayers,  &c.,  to  be  used 
for  s*d  King,  his  Family  &  Government,  We  find  ourselves  under  the 
necessity  of  requesting  you  to  omit  in  your  use  of  the  Service  all 
Prayers,  Collects,  or  Suffrages  which  relate  to  the  King,  Royal  Family, 
or  Government  of  Great  Britain,  both  as  we  would  avoid  great  Incon- 
sistency and  as  we  value  the  welfare  of  the  church,  being  assured  that 
without  such  omission  the   Existence  thereof  would  immediatel}'  cease. 

With  great  Respect  and  Esteem  we  are,  Rev'd  Sir, 

Your  most  humble  Servants, 

Joseph  Cutler  1 

)-    IWirdcns 


) 


JOHX    ViNAL 

Wm  Atkins  ^         ,,,,,/ 

Tristram   Daltox 
Wm  Jexkixs 
GoDFRV  Smith 


I  'estryiiieii 
of 


Daxiel  Marquaxd   '  St.  Paul 
JOHX  Jexkixs  Church. 

Bexja  Balch 

W^i    MORLAXD 


4o8  OULD   NEWBURY 

]^()uiul  b}-  an  oath  of  allcg-iancc  to  the  kini;-  and  to  the 
church,  Mr.  ]-5ass  was  naturally  embarrassed  by  the  difficulties 
of  the  situation.  He  yielded,  however,  to  the  ties  of  kindred 
and  countr)',  and  complied  with  the  request  made  by  his 
wardens  and   \'estr}men. 

In  consequence  of  this  act  of  insubordination,  and  the 
subsequent  observance  of  fast  da)-s  api:)ointed  by  the  civil 
authorities,  and  the  contribution  of  money  for  the  relief  of 
those  who  had  suffered  in  *' the  rebellion,"  his  services  as 
missionary  of  the  London  society  were  discontinued  and  his 
salary  withheld.  He  insisted  on  his  loyalty  to  the  church, 
although  he  had  forsworn  his  allegiance  to  the  king  ;  but  the 
society  remained  deaf  to  his  entreaties,  and  he  became  en- 
tirely dependent  on  his  parish  for  future  support. 

During  the  war,  St.  Paul's  Church  continued  its  active 
parochial  work  unmolested.  Among  its  earnest  and  devoted 
members  were  Tristram  Dalton,  afterward  senator  to  con- 
gress from  Massachusetts ;  Rufus  King,  afterward  senator 
from  the  State  of  New  York,  and  twice  minister  plenipoten- 
tiary to  the  court  of  St.  James  ;  Captain  Thomas  Thomas 
and  Captain  Nicholas  Tracy,  brave  and  intrepid  owners  and 
commanders  of  some  of  the  most  successful  privateers  on  the 
coast  ;  Patrick  Tracy,  one  of  the  most  eminent  merchants  of 
that  day ;  John  Tracy,  who  served  in  General  Sullivan's 
army  in  Rhode  Psland  as  aide-de-camp  to  General  Glover; 
and  many  others  who  contributed  in  various  ways  to  the 
cause  of  American  independence.  Although  firm  and  strong 
supporters  of  the  P^piscopal  form  of  worship,  they  were  never- 
theless ready  and  willing  to  aid  and  assist  in  the  struggle  for 
freedom. 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  the  lC]iisct)pal  church  in  the 
United  States  was  left  in  a  ckplorable  condition.  It  was 
thoroughly  disorganized,  with  no  \  isible  head  to  exercise 
authoiity  or  make  the  necessary  alterations  in  the  Hook  of 
Common  Pi'a\'er.  Candidates  wei"e  sent  to  i^ngland  tor 
conseci"ation  as  bishops  of  the  American  church,  but  a 
modification  of  ecclesiastical  law  was  retiuiretl  beiore  that 
objecl    could    be   attained.      After   a   lonu'   de]a\-  the   difficult\' 


ST.   PAULS   CHURCH  409 

was  removed  by  an  act  of  parliament  ;  and  Rev.  Dr.  William 
White,  of  Pennsylvania,  and  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  Provoost,  of 
New  York,  were  consecrated  at  Lambeth  Chapel  Feb.  4, 
1787.  Some  years  later  Rev.  James  Madison,  D.  D.,  of 
Virginia,  having  been  elected  bishop,  was  consecrated,  Sept. 
19,  1790,  by  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  the  bishop  of 
London,  and  the  bishop  of  Rochester. 

Meanwhile,  a  convention  of  the  New  P>ngland  churches 
was  held  in  Boston  on  the  7th  and  8th  of  September,  1785, 
for  the  purpose  of  considering  the  proposed  changes  in  the 
Book  of  Common  Prayer.  Rev.  Edward  Bass  was  chosen 
president,  and  after  a  full  and  free  discussion  many  important 
changes  and  alterations  in  the  liturgy  and  ritual  of  the 
church  were   suggested  and  adopted. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  clergy  of  Massachusetts  and  New- 
Hampshire,  held  at  Salem,  Mass.,  June  4,  1789,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  encouraging  and  promoting  the  growth  of  the  church 
in  New  England,  Rev.  Edward  Bass  was  nominated  and 
elected  to  the  office  of  bishop,  "  to  be  received  as  such  when 
canonically  consecrated  and  invested  with  the  Apostolic 
office." 

Sept.  16,  1789,  the  proprietors  of  St.  Paul's  Church 
elected  Hon.  Tristram  Dalton  and  Hon.  Elbridge  Gerry 
delegates  to  the  general  convention,  to  be  held  at  Philadel- 
phia Sept.  29,  1789,  and  appointed  Hon.  Jonathan  Jackson, 
Dudley  Atkins,  Esq.,  and  John  Tracy,  Esq.,  a  committee  to 
draw  up  a  letter  of  instructions  to  be  forwarded  to  Messrs. 
Dalton  and  Gerry,  then  in  New  York.  At  an  adjourned 
meeting,  held  two  days  later,  the  committee  submitted 
the  draft  of  a  letter  which  was  accepted  and  adopted  ;  and 
a  copy  of  the  same  was  entered  upon  the  records  of  the 
church. 

At  the  convention,  a  series  of  resolutions  were  adopted 
in  the  committee  of  the  whole,  requesting  the  bishops 
to  comply  "  with  the  prayer  of  the  clergy  of  the  States  of 
Massachusetts  and  New  Hampshire  for  the  consecration  of 
the  Rev.  Edward  Bass";  but,  for  prudential  reasons,  action 
was   delayed   until    after  the  death  of  Rev.   Dr.    Seabury,   of 


41  o  OULD   XEWBURY 

Connecticut,  who  had  been  consecrated  by  the  non-juring 
bishops  at  Aberdeen,  Scotland,  in  1784.  Rev.  Mr.  Bass  re- 
ceived the  honorary  degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity  from  the 
University  of  Penn.sylvania  in  I/cSq;  and  May  7,  1797,  he 
was  consecrated  in  Christ  Church,  Philadelphia,  as  bishop 
of  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island  by  Right-Rev.  William 
White,  D.  D.,  of  Pennsylvania,  Bishops  Provoost  and  Claggett 
being  present  and  assisting. 

Jan.  25,  1800,  the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts  passed 
an  act  authorizing  "  the  Proprietors  of  the  Episcopal  Church 
in  Newburyport  to  appoint  an  agent  with  power  to  transfer 
and  convey  to  such  persons  as  the  Proprietors  shall  think 
proper  the  building  now  occupied  by  them  for  the  upholding 
of  public  worship,  together  with  so  much  of  the  Proprietors' 
land  under  and  adjoining  the  same  as  shall  be  covered  by  a 
new  church  which   such  purchasers  may  cause  to  be  erected." 

At  a  meeting  of  the  proprietors  of  St.  Paul's  Church,  held 
Feb.  26,  1800,  John  Tracy,  P2sq.,  was  appointed  agent  to 
convey  to  Pxlward  Rand  and  others  "  the  present  church 
with  all  its  fixtures,  including  Bell,  Organ,  &c."  h\'bruary 
28,  John  Tracy  conveyed  the  building,  with  a  certain  portion 
of  the  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same,  to  the  following 
persons,  subscribers  to  the  fund  raised  for  the  erection  of  a 
new  church,  namely  :  Edward  Rand,  William  F'arris,  Joseph 
Kent,  Tristram  Coffin,  Samuel  Allyne  Otis,  Abraham  Jack- 
son, James  Prince,  Joseph  Cutler,  Samuel  Cutler,  Nicholas 
Tracy,  William  Cutler,  Isaac  Adams,  William  Woart,  Benja- 
min Balch,  William  Welstead  Prout,  John  Pettingal,  Abner 
Wood,  William  Wyer,  Jr.,  and  William  Moreland,  merchants  ; 
Edward  Bass,  Doctor  in  Di\init)' ;  lulward  Bass,  Jr.,  painter; 
George  Jenkins,  mariner  ;  Charles  Jackson,  gentleman  ;  .Abra- 
ham Gallishan,  sail-maker  ;  Thomas  Thomas,  gentleman  ; 
Joseph  Nowell,  tallow  chandler  ;  Tliomas  Packer,  teamster  ; 
Joseph  IIoo])ei',  gentleman;  (iilman  l-'i-othingham,  leather 
dresser;  Nathaniel  .\sh,  teamster;  John  Akerman,  rope- 
maker;  and  Richard  Peters,  cooper,  all  of  Newburvport  ;  and 
Humphrc)-  Morse,  }'eoman  ;  I)udle\'  Atkins  I  )ng,  l-^sq.  ; 
Stephen  Hooper,  Esti.  ;   .Stephen    Toppan,  liousewright  ;  Jacob 


ST.   PAUVS    CHURCH  41  i 

Little,  merchant  ;  Amos  Atkinson,  merchant  ;  and  Joseph 
Sawyer,  husbandman,  all  of  Newbury  ;  and  Joseph  Laughton, 
of  Boston. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  subscribers  to  this  fund,  held  March 
24,  1800,  Joseph  Kent,  Dudley  A.  Tyng,  Samuel  A.  Otis, 
William  Farris,  and  Tristram  Coffin  were  appointed  a  com- 
mittee to  make  the  contract  for  erecting  and  finishing  a  new 
church.  On  the  twenty-fifth  day  of  March  this  committee 
agreed  with  Stephen  Toppan  "  to  take  down  and  remove  the 
building  called  St.  Paul's  Church,"  and  erect  a  new  one  on 
the  same  spot,  according  to  specifications,  with  a  vestry-room 
in  the  rear,  "  and  a  piazza  of  the  Truscan  order  in  front,  sup- 
ported by  twelve  pillars.  .  .  .  The  Pulpit,  Reading  Desk  and 
Clerk's  Pew  shall  be  finished  like  those  of  Trinity  Church  in 
Boston,  except  as  to  the  ornamental  part  thereof,  which  shall 
be  decent  and  as  elegant  as  the  said  Stephen  shall  think  be- 
coming." The  bell,  organ,  and  altar-piece  (reredos)  were  to 
be  carefully  taken  down  and  set  up  again  in  the  new  church. 
All  of  this  work  was  to  be  finished  and  completed  before  the 
fifteenth  day  of  October,  1800. 

The  corner-stone  was  laid  with  Masonic  ceremonies  by  the 
Grand  Lodge  of  Massachusetts  on  the  twenty-second  day  of 
May.  Services  were  held  in  the  Second  Presbyterian  meet- 
ing-house, Bishop  Bass  officiating.  Rev.  William  Bentley, 
D.  D.,  a  Congregational  minister  of  Salem,  Mass.,  delivered 
the  address. 

The  following  letters,  written  to  Rev.  Dr.  Bentley  just 
before  and  just  after  that  event,  taken  from  a  biographical 
sketch  of  that  eminent  clergyman,  prepared  by  Rev.  S.  C. 
Beane,  of  Newburyport,  are  exceedingly  interesting  and 
suggestive  :  — 

Rev.  &-  Dear  Sir;  Newburyport,  May  i  7,  1800. 

Possibly  you  may  know  that  the  little  handful  of  Episcopalians  here 
are  building  a  new  church  for  our  good  friend  Dr.  Bass.  The  excellent 
old  Gentleman  is  so  delighted  with  the  thing  that  he  must  needs  have 
a  ceremony  in  laying  the  corner-stone.  This  ceremony  is  to  be  per- 
formed by  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Massachusetts  on  Thursday  next.  I 
know  your  affection  for  the  craft.  &  1  avail  myself  of  it  to  support  my 


r 


>";,i«a«3eJi't-'-> 


^ 

c 

Wi 

m 

"  1 

i  '  ■ 

J' 

ST.   PAUL'S   CHURCH  4I3 

request  that  you  will  join  us   in  the  business,  and  particularly  that  you 
will  make  your  quarters  at  my  house.  .  .  . 

I  am.  Dear  Sir,  &c., 

Dudley  A.  Tyng. 


Newburyport,  May  31,  1800. 
My  Dear  Sir;  ^ 

\o\xx  heart  is  benevolent,  your  head  is  liberal,  but,  as  your  memory 
may  be  treacherous,  I  take  the  liberty  to  remind  you  of  the  tobacco. 

Yours, 

Edward  Bass. 
Rev.  W'"  Bentley. 

Rev.  Dr.  Bentley's  address  was  published  in  full  in  the 
Nciubnryport  Herald,  May  30,  1 800. 

At  the  close  of  the  exercises  in  the  Second  Presbyterian 
meeting-house,  a  procession  was  formed,  and  proceeded  to  the 
site  of  the  new  church,  where  under  a  triumphal  arch,  on 
which  was  written  in  letters  of  gold,  "Holiness  to  the 
Lord,"  the  corner-stone  was  laid  by  Bishop  Bass,  assisted  by 
his  Masonic  brethren.  The  church  was  consecrated  Oct.  8, 
1800  ;  and  the  proprietors,  at  a  meeting  held  Dec.  22,  1800, 
"voted  that  the  thanks  of  this  meeting  be  and  hereby  are 
presented  to  the  Second  Presbyterian  Society  in  Newbury- 
port for  their  truly  Christian  kindness  in  accommodating  us 
with  the  use  of  their  Meeting  House  the  past  season  while  our 
church  was  rebuilding;  and  that  Dudley  A.  Tyng,  Esq.,  M-" 
Edward  Rand  and  M''  Joseph  Kent  be  committee  to  com- 
municate the  same." 

Since  that  date  the  church  has  remained  substantially  the 
same  in  outward  appearance,  but  some  noteworthy  changes 
have  been  made  within.  The  clerk's  pew  has  long  since  dis- 
appeared ;  and  in  place  of  the  old  pulpit  and  reading-desk  are 
more  elaborate  works  of  bronze  and  brass,  memorial  gifts 
from  friends  of  the  church. 

The  old  bell  was  broken  while  being  rung  on  Sunday,  Dec. 
23,  1 8 10.  A  new  one,  ca.st  by  Paul  Revere,  Boston,  weigh- 
ing six  hundred  and  thirty-seven  pounds,  was  placed  in  the 
belfry    Eeb.    14,   181 1,  and    rung  for  the  first  time   Sunday, 


414  OULD   NEWBVRY 

Feb.  I/,  i8i  I.  The  old  or^an  occupied  a  i)romineiit  position 
in  the  front  i;"allery,  ()pi)osite  the  chancel,  until  1836,  when  it 
was  sold,  and  replaced  by  a  new  one.  \x\  the  summer  of 
1866,  another  change  was  made  for  the  accommodation  of  the 
choir.  The  organ  was  removed  from  the  gallery.  Another 
and  hu"ger  instrument  was  |)urchased,  and  set  up  on  the  lower 
floor  of  the  church  on  the  northwesterly  side  of  the  chancel, 
where  it  still  remains. 

The  altar-piece,  or  reredos,  to  which  reference  is  made  in 
the  contract,  resembles  in  general  shape  and  appearance  the 
altar-piece  brought  from  England  in  171 4,  and  set  up  in 
St.  Michael's  Church,  Marblehead.  The  similarity  of  design 
indicates  that  the  imported  English  work  was  taken  as  a 
model  by  the  builders  of  St.  Paul's  Church,  Newburyport. 
Some  changes  and  alterations,  however,  were  made  at  the 
time  ;  and,  when  the  new  church  was  built  in  1800,  the  panel 
containing  the  Ten  Commandments,  the  Lord's  Prayer,  and 
the  Apostles'  Creed,  was  added.  The  letters  are  said  to 
have  been  drawn  by  William  Woart,  and  painted  b}'  Edward 
Bass,  nephew  of  Bishop  Bass. 

When  repairs  were  made  upon  the  church  in  1 842,  the 
eagle,  for  some  reason  unknown,  was  taken  from  its  place 
above  the  altar,  and  after  an  absence  of  nearly  forty  years, 
during  which  time  it  occupied  a  conspicuous  place  in  front  of 
engine  house  No.  3,  on  Congress  Street,  Newbur)ix)rt,  and 
afterward  in  front  of  the  store  of  T.  H.  &  A.  W.  Lord  on 
Market  Square,  it  was  rescued  and  restored  through  the 
efforts  of  Ben :  Perley  Poore,  Msq.,  and  Mr.  Charles  W. 
Moseley,  to  its  former  position  in  the  church, —  a  worthy  and 
appropriate  memorial  and  symbol  of  the  everlasting  gosjx'l, 
bearing  its  message  of  peace  and  good  will  to  every  tribe  and 
tongue  and  people. 

This  eagle,  though  long  associated  with  the  church,  did 
not  form  a  ])art  of  the  ancient  altar-piece,  and  probably  dates 
its  existence  from  the  )'ear  1800.  Among  the  items  charged 
in  the  account  of  Samuel  A.  (^tis,  who  was  cleik  of  the  com- 
mittee appointed  to  superintend  the  building  of  the  new- 
church,  is   the  sum    of   twent\-fi\e    dollars,  "  Paid    \\"ilson  for 


41 6  OULD   NEWBURY 

carvin<;  ea<;le."  There  is  also  in  the  same  account  a  charge 
of  nine  dolhirs  "for  carving  mitre  &  small  eggle."  The 
mitre,  carved  in  wood,  was  placed  above  the  belfry  as  an 
emblem  of  the  office  of  the  first  bishop  of  Massachusetts 
and  Rhode  Island  ;  but  how  or  when  the  "small  eggle"  was 
used  is  at  the  present  time  unknown. 

Bishop  Bass  was  twice  married.  His  first  w4fe,  Sarah 
(Beck)  Bass,  died  in  May,  1789,  leaving  no  children.  For 
his  secontl  wife  he  married  Miss  Mercy  Phillips,  who  survived 
him  many  years.*  He  died  Sept.  10,  1803,  in  the  seventy- 
si.xth  year  of  his  age,  and  was  buried  in  the  churchyard  on 
the  thirteenth  day  of  the  month,  Rev.  Dr.  Parker,  of  Boston, 
preaching  the  sermon  on  that  occasion  and  reading  the  com- 
mittal service  at  the  grave. 

Rev.  Dr.  Bentley,  in  his  diary  under  date  of  May  23,  1804, 
writes  as  follows  :  — 

I  received  from  Xewburyport  a  catalogue  of  Bishop  Bass'  library 
which  is  to  be  sold  on  Friday  next.  .  .  .  The  catalogue  contained  46 
FoHos  &  240  vohmies  besides,  including  all  sorts  found  in  his  hands. 
This  would  not  be  a  considerable  library  in  Europe,  but  it  is  greater 
than  is  commonly  found  among  our  prominent  divines  in  America,  &  is 
more  of  a  Theological  cast  than  I  have  seen,  except  the  Hbrary  of  the 
Mathers,  Dr.  Mather  Byles,  Chauncy,  &  Cooper,  or,  in  other  words, 
than  ever  I  have  seen  out  of  Boston,  no  one  excepted. 

I  could  not  help  noticing,  in  going  over  the  catalogue,  I  did  not  find 
the  least  notice  of  a  Greek  Testament  ...  no  modern  or  late  com- 
mentary even  of  his  own  church.  .  .  .  The  same  inattention  to  American 
history. 

Rev.  James  Morss,  born  in  Newburyi)ort  Oct.  25,  1779, 
graduated  at  Harvard  College  in  1800,  was  admitted  to  the 
order  of  deacons  in  the  Episcopal  C'biuch  by  Right-Rev. 
Pklward  Bass,  D.  D.,  on  the  third  day  of  July.  1803.  On  the 
nineteenth  day  of  October,  of  the  same  year,  he  was  in\itcd 
to  take  charge  of  St.  Paul's  parish.  June  11,  1804,  he  was 
(jrdained  priest  by  Bishop  Moore  in  the  French  Church 
du  St.  Fsprit,  in  the  city  t)f  New  York  ;  and  for  nearly 
thirty-nine  years   he   continued   the    work   of  the   ministr\-  in 

*  Mrs.  Mtriy  I'.ass  died  Jan.  i,^,  1S42,  .iRod  oiglity-seven. 


ST.  PAUUS   CHURCH  417 

Newburyport.      In  the  records  of  the  church   soon  after  he 
became  rector,  he  wrote  as  follows  :  — 

On  the  6"'  of  August,  1S05,  a  fast  was  kept  at  Mr.  Dana's  Meeting 
House  on  account  of  the  long  drought  ;  but  two  most  beautiful  showers, 
occurring  about  three  days  previous,  occasioned  no  small  embarrass- 
ment. A  proposal  made  by  myself  to  convert  the  fast  into  a  day  of 
thanksgiving  was  not  favorably  received. 

Princeton  College,  N.  J.,  conferred  upon  him  the  honorary 
degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity  in  1826.  On  Sunday,  Dec.  31, 
1837,  he  preached  in  St.  Paul's  Church,  Newburyport,  two 
historical  discourses  that  were  afterward  published  in  pam- 
phlet form,  from  which  many  of  the  facts  for  this  sketch  are 
taken.  He  died  April  26,  1842.  Arrangements  for  the 
funeral  were  made  by  a  committee  appointed  by  the  wardens 
and  vestrymen  of  the  church.  Rev.  Daniel  Dana,  Rev. 
John  Andrews,  Rev.  Leonard  Withington,  Rev.  Jonathan  F". 
Stearns,  Rev.  Luther  F.  Dimmick,  Rev.  Randolph  Campbell, 
Rev.  Thomas  B.  Fox,  and  Rev.  John  C.  March,  clergymen  in 
Newburyport,  were  invited  to  act  as  pall-bearers.  Rev.  Mr. 
Searle,  chaplain  of  the  United  States  navy,  read  the  sen- 
tences on  entering  the  church.  Rev.  Mr.  Watson,  of  Trinity 
Church,  Boston,  read  the  selections  from  the  Psalms.  Rev. 
Thomas  M.  Clark,  of  Grace  Church,  Boston,  read  the  lesson. 
Right-Rev.  Alexander  V.  Griswold,  bishop  of  the  Eastern 
diocese,  read  the  other  parts  of  the  burial  service.  Rev. 
Charles  Burroughs,  D.  D.,  of  Portsmouth,  N.  H.,  preached  a 
sermon  from  Psalm  xii.,  i, —  "  Help,  Lord,  for  the  godly  man 
ceaseth  ;  for  the  faithful  fail  from  among  the  children  of 
men."  The  committal  service  was  read  at  the  grave,  in  the 
churchyard  adjoining;  and  subsequently  an  appropriate  monu- 
ment was  erected  to  his  memory  by  order  of  the  parish. 

In  the  spring  of  1843,  Re^-  John  S.  Davenport,  of  Stam- 
ford, Conn.,  a  graduate  of  Yale  College,  was  invited  to 
officiate  in  the  church.  He  preached  his  first  sermon  March 
5,  1843.  During  the  summer  the  church  was  closed  for 
repairs,  and  services  were  held  in  the  court-house  on  Bartlett 
Mall.      Rev.    John    S.    Davenport    was    ordained    priest    and 


41 8  OULD   NEWBURY 

instituted  rector  of  St.  Paul's  Church  in  December,  1843. 
In  consequence  of  some  disai^reement  he  resii;-ned  his  position 
Nov.  12.  1844. 

Rev.  lulward  A.  Washburn,  born  in  Boston  in  1819,  L;radu- 
ated  at  Marvard  College  in  1838,  was  invited,  March  4,  1845, 
to  become  rector  of  St.  Paul's  Church.  He  accepted  the  in- 
vitation, and  after  a  delay  of  some  months  was  admitted  to 
priest's  orders.  He  remained  in  charge  of  the  parish  until 
Aug.  3,  1 85  I,  when  he  tendered  his  resignation,  in  order  that 
he  might  have  opportunity  to  travel  in  the  Holy  Land. 

Rev.  William  Horton,  D.  D.,  was  the  next  rector.  He  was 
born  in  Newburyport  March  14,  1805,  graduated  at  tlarxard 
College  in  1824,  and  entered  upon  his  duties  as  rector  of 
St.  Paul's  Church  Sept.  i,  1853.  In  November,  1861,  Rev. 
Dr.  Horton  submitted  to  the  wardens  and  vestrymen  a  pro- 
posal to  build  at  his  own  expense,  on  the  westerly  side  of  the 
church,  a  stone  chapel  in  memory  of  a  beloved  daughter  re- 
cently deceased.  The  building  was  erected  during  the  year 
1862,  and  consecrated  May  23,  1863.  Rev.  Dr.  Horton  died 
Oct.  29,  1863.  humeral  services  were  held  in  the  church 
October  31,  Right-Rev.  Bishop  Plastburn  officiating. 

Rev.  John  C.  Wliite  was  invited  to  become  associate  rector 
with  Rev.  Dr.  Horton  Jan.  19,  1863.  He  accepted  the  invi- 
tation, and,  after  the  death  of  Rev.  Dr.  Horton,  remained  in 
charge  of  the  parish  for  seven  years.  May  20,  1865,  the  old 
parsonage  house  —  the  gift  of  Mrs.  Mercy  Bass,  widow  of 
Bishop  Bass,  to  the  church  —  was,  by  order  of  the  supreme 
court,  held  at  Salem  in  the  month  of  April  preceding,  sold  at 
auction,  and  the  proceeds  added  to  the  Bass  fund,  in  charge 
of  the  trustees  of  donations  to  the  l^pisco]3al  church  in 
Massachusetts. 

Rev.  John  C.  White  resigned  as  rector  of  St.  Paul's  Church 
April  18,  1870;  and  Oct.  24,  1870,  Rev.  George  D.  Jt)hnson 
was  imited  to  take  charge  of  the  vacant  pulpit.  He  entered 
upon  his  duties  Nov.  i,  1870,  and  remained  rector  until 
Oct.    5,    1875. 

llis  successor,  Re\-.  \\.  L.  Drown,  held  the  office  from  May 
3,  1876,  to  Dec.  20,  1883,  and  was  followetl  b}'  Re\-.  J.  11. 
Van  Buix'n  from  No\-.  20,  1884,  to  Jul}-  1,  1890. 


ST.    PAUIJS    CHURCH  419 

The  present  rector,  Rev.  William  C.  Richardson,  was  in- 
\-ited  to  take  charge  of  the  parish  Sept.  i,  i8go.  He  entered 
upon  the  duties  of  his  office  Sept.  15,  1890. 

In  the  churchyard  are  many  interesting  monuments 
erected  to  the  memory  of  men  and  women  prominent  in  the 
early  history  of  Newbury  and  Newburyport. 

Rev.  Matthias  Plant,  in  his  record  of  deaths  and  burials, 
says  :  "  Elizabeth,  Dater  of  Ambrose  Davis  &  Margaret,  was 
ye  first  corpse  interred  in  ye  new  church  yard  by  ye  water 
side  July  17,  1742,  aged  17  months."  The  oldest  stone  now 
standing  there  marks  the  grave  of  Sarah  Atkins,  daughter  of 
William  and  Abigail  Atkins,  who  died  July  19,  1742. 

The  oldest  person  buried  within  this  enclosure  was  Joseph 
Atkins,  who  died  Jan.  21,  1773,  aged  ninety-nine.  The  oldest 
woman  was  Miss  Margaret  Morris  Jenkins,  who  died  Sept.  27, 
1865,  aged  ninety-six  years  and  four  months.  The  total 
number  of  inscriptions  on  gravestones  now  standing  is  two 
hundred  and  eighty,  and  twenty-five  of  them  relate  to  men 
and  women  who  were  at  least  eighty  years  of  age  at  the  time 
of  their  decease. 

In  the  list  of  worthy  and  distinguished  citizens  who  now 
rest  from  their  labors  in  this  old  church}'ard  are  the  names 
of  Michael  Dalton,  Anthony  Gwynn,  Joseph  Atkins,  Patrick 
Tracy,  Thomas  Thomas,  Bishop  Bass,  Rev.  James  Morse, 
D.  D.,  Dudley  Atkins  Tyng,  John  Tracy,  Tristram  Dalton, 
William  Moreland,  and  Edward  S.  Rand. 


-•Hi*--      . 


THE   DEVIL'S   DEN. 


In  1697,  the  discovery  of  limestone  "  within  half  a  mile 
of  the  navigable  part  of  Little  river"  created  great  excite- 
ment in  the  town  of  Newbury.  Previous  to  this  date  all  the 
lime  used  for  house-building  purposes  was  obtained  from 
oyster  and  clam  shells.  Mortar  made  from  this  lime  was 
very  durable,  and  came,  in  process  of  time,  to  be  almost  as 
hard  as  granite.  When  the  first  house  on  Kent's  Island 
was  erected,  the  chimney  inside  the  house  was  made  of  clay, 
while  the  portion  projecting  above  the  roof  was  built  of  brick 
laid  in  mortar,  made  from  the  lime  of  oyster  shells.  A  cen- 
tury later,  when  the  old  house  was  taken  down  to  give  place 
to  a  new  one,  the  brick  chimney  top,  still  solid  and  firm,  was 
raised  from  the  clay  with  heavy  iron  bars,  and  is  said  to  have 
rolled  down  the  steep  roof  and  fallen  to  the  ground  without 
starting  a  brick. 

Alonzo  Lewis,  the  historian  of  Lynn,  states  that  in  1696 
a  large  quantity  of  clams  were  thrown  upon  the  Lynn  and 
Nahant  beaches  during  the  severe  storms  of  that  year. 
"  The  people  were  permitted,  by  a  vote  of  the  town,  to  dig 
and  gather  as  many  as  they  wished  for  their  own  use,  but 
no  more;  and  no  person  was  allowed  to  carry  any  out  of 
the  town,  on  a  penalty  of  twenty  shillings.  The  shells  were 
gathered  in  cartloads  on  the  beach,   and  manufactured  into 

lime." 

The  same  author  says,  in  the  year  171 2,  "all  the  shells 
which  came  upon  the  Nahant  beaches  were  sold  by  the  town 
to  Daniel  Brown  and  William  Gray  for  thirty  shillings. 
They  were  not  to  sell  the  shells  for  more  than  eight  shillings 
a  load,  containing  forty-eight  bushels,  heaped  measure.  The 
people  were  permitted  to  dig  and  gather  the  clams  as  before, 


4^2  OULD    NEWBURY 

and   leave   the   sliells.      The  house   in  which    I  was   born  was 
plastered  with   lime   made  from   these  shells." 

Concerning  the  great  discovery  in  Newbury,  Judge  Sewall 
says  in  his  diary,  under  date  of  Sept.  8,  1697,  volume  5, 
page  458  :  — 

Col.  Pierce  gave  an  account  of  the  Body  of  Lime-Stone  discovered 
at  Newbury,  and  the  order  of  the  Selectmen  published  by  James  Brown, 
Deputy  Sheriff,  to  prohibit  any  persons  from  carrying  any  more  away 
under  the  penalty  of  twenty  shillings.  It  seems  they  have  begun  to 
come  with  Teams  by  30  in  a  day.  The  Town  will  have  a  meeting,  and 
bring  it  to  some  Regulation.  Our  Mumford  saith  'tis  good  INIarble. 
Ens.  James  Noyes  found  it  out. 

Cofifin,  in  his  History  of  Newbury,  says  that  the  town 
chose  Sept.  22,  1697,  "Major  Daniel  Davison,  Corporal 
George  March,  and  ensign  James  Noyes,  as  a  committee, 
who  shall  inspect  into  all  matters  concerning  the  limestones 
in  any  of  the  undivided  lands  in  the  town,  who  shall  have 
the  sole  ordering,  disposing,  and  importing  said  limestones 
for  the  town's  use  in  what  way  and  manner  the}'  shall  judg 
shall  most  conduce  to  the  benefit  of  the  town."  This  com- 
mittee were  required  to  keep  a  strict  and  accurate  account 
of  all  receipts  and  expenditures,  to  be  reported  to  the  town 
every  six  months,  and  all  persons  were  prohibited  from 
taking  any  of  this  limestone  for  their  own  personal  use  under 
a  penalty  of  twenty  shillings  for  each  and  every  hogshead 
so  taken. 

The  town  also  voted  that  "  the  kiln  for  burning  said  lime 
shall  be  built  at  or  near  the  end  of  Muzzie's  lane,  next  the 
Merrimack  river."  This  kiln,  located  at  the  foot  of  what 
is  now  known  as  Marlborough  Street,  was  used  exclusively 
for  the  burning  of  lime  by  the  committee  apjiointed  on  the 
part   of   the   town,   to   attend   to   that   duty. 

( )ther  kilns,  however,  were  constructed  within  the  limits 
of  Newbury  by  private  indix'iduals,  and  limestone  was  pur- 
chased from  the  town  at  a  fixed  rate,  and  manufactured  into 
lime  at  a  good  profit.  In  1698,  the  town  "  \-oted  that  four 
shillings  ])er  ton  shall   be   paid  for  lime  stones   for  transjiorta- 


THE   DF.l'IVS  DEiV  423 

tion,  and  that  no  more  shall  be  sold  out  of  the  towne  till 
further  order."  Jan.  5,  1704,  "the  town  voted  that  two 
shillings  and  six  pence  per  ton  shall  be  paid  for  lime  stone, 
provided  that  they  buy  them,  dig  them,  and  burn  them  in 
Newbury." 

Meanwhile,  another  quarry  had  been  discovered  on  the 
road  leading  to  Kent's  Island ;  and  the  work  of  drilling, 
blasting,  and  removing  limestone,  was  carried  on  simulta- 
neously in  both  places.  For  many  years  the  business  con- 
tinued prosperous  and  lucrative  ;  but,  at  length,  the  discovery 
of  a  superior  quality  of  stone  in  other  parts  of  New  England 
lessened  the  demand  for  the  product  of  the  Newbury  quarries, 
and  they  gradually  fell  into  disuse,  and  finally  were  abandoned 
altogether. 

Gushing,  in  his  History  of  Newburyport,  published  in  1826, 
describing  these  limestone  pits,  says  :  — 

The  excavations  are  still  regarded  with  interest  on  account  of  the 
number  of  minerals  to  be  found  there,  some  of  which  are  of  rare  occur- 
rence. The  limestone  rock  is  intersected  with  strata  of  serpentine  of 
various  shades,  from  the  light  green  to  the  darkest  variety,  of  a  fine 
grain,  and  susceptible  of  the  most  beautiful  polish.  The  serpentine 
again  is  frequently  traversed  by  thin  veins  of  asbestos  of  a  short  but 
very  delicate  and  glossy  fibre.  Tremolite,  also,  is  found  there  in  abun- 
dance, with  iron  pyrites,  sometimes  of  a  large  size ;  and  occasionally 
garnets  and  other  more   common   minerals. 

Long  after  these  quarries  had  ceased  to  have  a  commercial 
value,  pleasure  parties  were  accustomed,  during  the  summer 
months,  to  seek  rest  and  recreation  there,  beguiling  the  time 
with  marvelous  stories  in  which  the  Prince  of  Darkness  was 
given  a  conspicuous  place.  In  later  years  the  young  and 
credulous  found  traces  of  his  Satanic  Majesty's  footsteps  in 
the  solid  rock,  and  discovered  other  unmistakable  signs  of 
his  presence  in  that  locality  ;  and  ever  since  the  Devil's  Den, 
the  Devil's  Basin,  and  the  Devil's  Pulpit  have  been  objects 
of  peculiar  interest  to  every  native  of  old  Newbury. 


THE   OLD   ELM   OF   NEWBURY. 


The  American  elm  is  not  a  very  long-lived  tree.  It  grows 
with  vigor  for  seventy-five  or  one  hundred  years,  but  begins 
to  show  signs  of  decay  long  before  it  is  two  centuries  old. 
Very  few  elms  reach  the  age  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  ;  and 
seldom,  if  ever,  is  one  seen  three  hundred  years  old. 

The  Newbury  elm,  on  Parker  Street,  was  probably  set  out 
in  the  year  171 3,  and  therefore  is  now  one  hundred  and 
eighty-three  years  old.  At  that  date,  Richard  Jaques,  born 
Jan.  6,  1684,  is  said  to  have  brought  the  young  and  slender 
tree  to  his  father's  house,  and  planted  it  there.  Slowly  at 
first,  but  afterward  taking  firm  hold  on  the  soil,  it  threw  its 
branches  outward  and  upward  into  the  sunlight,  and  year  by 
year  added  to  its  height  and  circumference. 

Richard  Jaques  married  Feb.  25,  171 3-4,  Elizabeth,  daugh- 
ter of  Joseph  and  Deborah  Knight.  In  March,  1 760-1, 
Richard  Jaques  and  his  wife  Elizabeth  both  died  of  small-pox, 
and  were  buried  on  land  belonging  to  the  estate,  almost  di- 
rectly opposite  the  old  homestead  where  they  had  lived  for 
nearly  fifty  years. 

The  house  was  taken  down  in  17S6,  and  replaced  by  a  new 
one  that  is  still  standing  beneath  the  shade  of  the  old  elm. 
It  is  now  owned  and  occupied  by  William  Jaques,  a  lineal 
descendant  of  Richard  Jaques,  who 

"...  planted  the  tree  by  his  family  cot. 
To  stand  as  a  monument,  marking  the  spot 
It  helped  him  to  reach,  and.  what  was  still  more. 
Because  it  had  grown  b}'  his  fair  one's  door." 

The  half-tone  print  on  the  opposite  page  gives  the  best 
view  of  the  old  elm  that   can   be  obtained  by  the  use  of  the 


426  OULD   A'EIVBURY 

camera ;  but,  nevertheless,  it  does  not  reveal  its  great  size 
and   graceful   jMoportions. 

Fourteen  feet  is  a  large  girth  for  an  elm  tree,  measured 
five  feet  above  the  ground.  Eighteen  feet  is  a  ver)'  large  one, 
and  twenty-two  feet  and  a  few  inches  is  the  maximum.  The 
Newbury  elm  has  a  girth  of  seventeen  feet  and  two  inches. 
It  is  said  to  have  been  eighty-five  feet  in  height,  and  to  meas- 
ure ninety-si.x  feet  across  from  bough  end  to  bough  end,  when 
in  its  prime.  But  the  ice  storm  of  1885  destroyed  its  beauty 
and  symmetry  ;  and  in  June,  1890,  one  of  the  largest  branches 
was  torn  off  by  the  wind  within  six  feet  of  the  roots. 

Notwithstanding  these  serious  injuries,  the  old  elm  is  still 
grand  and  impressive.  Its  massive  trunk  and  towering 
branches  show  signs  of  decay  ;  but,  when  it  shall  have 
crumbled  to  the  dust  and  disappeared  from  mortal  sight,  it 
will  still  live  in  the  beautiful  lines  written  by  Miss  Hannah 
Y.  Gould  nearly  sixty  years  ago  :  — 

Did  ever  it  come  in  your  way  to  pass 
The  silvery  pond,  witli  its  fringe  of  grass. 
And.  threading  the  lane  hard  by,  to  see 
The  veteran  ehn  of  Newbury? 

You  saw  how  its  roots  had  grasped  the  ground. 
As  if  it  had  felt  that  the  earth  went  round. 
And  fastened  them  down  with  determined  will 
To  keep  it  steady,  and  hold  it  still. 
Its  aged  trunk,  so  stately  and  strong. 
Has  braved  the  blasts  as  they've  rushed  along. 
Its  head  has  towered  and  its  arms  have  spread. 
While  more  than  a  hundred  years  have  tied  ! 

Well,  that  old  elm,  that  is  now  so  grand. 

Was  once  a  twig  in  the  rustic  hand 

Of  a  youthful  peasant,  who  went  one  night 

To  visit  his  love,  by  the  tender  light 

Of  the  modest  moon  and  her  twinkling  host ; 

While  the  star  that  lighted  his  bosom  most. 

And  gave  to  his  lonely  feet  their  speed. 

Abode  in  a  cottage  beyond  the  mead. 


THE    OLD    ELM   OE  XEIVBCRY  4-7 

"Twas  the  peaceful  close  of  a  summer's  day  ; 

Its  glorious  orb  had  passed  away  : 

The  toil  of  the  field  till  the  morn  had  ceased. 

For  a  season  of  rest  to  man  and  beast. 

The  mother  had  silenced  her  humming  wheel ; 

The  father  returned  for  the  evening  meal 

The  thanks  of  one  who  had  chosen  the  part 

Of  the  poor  in  spirit,  the  rich  in  heart. 

Who.  having  the  soul's  grand  panacea. 

Feel  all  is  added  that's  needful  here. 

And  know  this  truth  of  the  human  breast. 

That  loaiitino^  little  is  being  blest. 

The  good  old  man  in  his  chair  reclined, 

At  a  humble  door,  with  a  peaceful  mind ; 

While  the  drops  from  his  sun-burnt  brow  were  dried 

By  the  cool,  sweet  air  of  the  eventide. 

The  son  from  the  yoke  had  unlocked  the  bow. 

Dismissing  the  faithful  ox  to  go 

And  graze  in  the  close.      He  had  called  the  kine 

For  their  oblation  at  day's  decline. 

He'd  gathered  and  numbered  the  lambs  and  sheep. 

And  fastened  them  up  in  their  nightly  keep. 

He'd  stood  bv  the  coop  till  the  hen  could  bring 

Her  huddling  brood  safe  under  her  wing, 

And  made  them  secure  from  the  hooting  owl. 

Whose  midnight  prey  was  the  shrieking  fowl. 

When  all  was  finished,  he  sped  to  the  well. 

Where  the  old  gray  bucket  hastily  fell ; 

And  the  clear  cold  water  came  up  to  chase 

The  dust  of  the  field  from  his  neck  and  face. 

And  hands  and  feet,  till  the  youth  began 

To  look  renewed  in  the  outer  man. 

And,  soon  arrayed  in  his  Sunday's  best, 

The  stiff  new  suit  had  done  the  rest. 

And  the  hale  young  lover  was  on  his  w^ay. 

W'here.  through  the  fen  and  the  field,  it  lay  ; 

And  over  the  bramble,  the  brake,  and  the  grass. 

As  the  shortest  cut  to  the  house  of  his  lass. 

It  is  not  recorded  how  long  he  stayed 
In  the  cheerful  home  of  the  smiling  maid  ; 
But.  when  he  came  out,  it  was  late  and  dark 
And  silent. —  not  even  a  dog  would  bark 


42  8  OULD   NEWBURY 

To  take  from  his  feeling  of  loneliness. 

And  make  the  length  of  his  way  seem  less. 

He  thought  it  was  strange  that  the  treacherous  moon 

Should  have  given  the  world  the  slip  so  soon: 

And,  whether  the  eyes  of  the  girl  had  made 

The  stars  of  the  sky  in  his  own  to  fade 

Or  not.  it  certainly  seemed  to  him 

That  each  grew  distant  and  small  and  dim. 

And  he  shuddered  to  think  he  was  now  about 

To  take  a  long  and  a  lonely  route ; 

For  he  did  not  know  what  fearful  sight 

Miirht  come  to  him  through  the  shadows  of  night  I 


An  elm  grew  close  by  the  cottage's  eaves. 

So  he  plucked  him  a  twig  well  clothed  with  leaves : 

And,  sallying  forth  with  the  supple  arm, 

To  serve  as  a  talisman  parrying  harm. 

He  felt  that,  though  his  heart  was  so  big. 

"Twas  even  the  stouter  for  having  the  twig. 

For  this,  he  thought,  would  answer  to  switch 

The  horrors  away,  as  he  crossed  the  ditch. 

The  meadow  and  copse,  wherein,  perchance. 

Will-o"-the-wisp  might  wickedly  dance. 

And,  wielding  it,  keep  him  from  having  a  chill 

At  the  menacing  sound  of  ■•  Whip-poor-will ! "' 

And  his  flesh  from  creeping,  beside  the  bog. 

At  the  harsh,  bass  voice  of  the  viewless  frog. 

In  short,  he  felt  that  the  switch  would  be 

(luard,  plaything,  business,  and  company. 

When  he  got  safe  home,  and  joyfully  found 

He  still  was  himself  !   and  living  1   and  sound  I 

He  planted  the  twig  by  his  family  cot. 

To  stand  as  a  monument,  marking  the  spot 

It  helped  him  to  reach,  and.  what  was  still  more, 

Because  it  had  grown  by  his  fair  one's  door. 

The  twig  took  root,  and,  as  time  flew  by. 
Its  boughs  spread  wide  and  its  head  grew  high  : 
W'iiile  the  priest's  good  service  had  long  been  done. 
Wiiich  made  the  youth  and  the  maiden  one, 
.\n(l  tiieir  voung  scions  arose  and  played 
.Xroimd  the  tree,  in  its  leafv  shade. 


THE    OLD    ELM   OF  XEWDUKY  429 

But  many  and  many  a  year  has  fled 

Since  they  were  gathered  among  the  dead  : 

And  now  their  names,  with  the  moss  o'ergrown. 

Are  veiled  from  sight  on  the  churchyard  stone 

That  leans  away,  in  a  lingering  fall. 

And  owns  the  power  that  shall  level  all 

The  works  that  the  hand  of  man  hath  wrought. 

Bring  him  to  dust,  and  his  name  to  nought : 

While,  near  in  view,  and  just  beyond 

The  grassy  skirts  of  the  silver  pond. 

In  its  "green  old  age,"  stands  the  noble  tree 

Tlie  veteran  elm  of  Xewburv. 


THIRD    PARISH   IN    NEWBURY, 

And  First  Religious  Society  in  Newburyport. 


Sept.  17,  1722,  the  First  Farish  in  Newbury  gave  their 
consent  to  the  formation  of  a  parish  to  be  called  the  Third 
Farish  in  Newbury,  but  its  bounds  and  limits  were  not  defi- 
nitely fixed  until  two  or  three  years  later. 

Coffin,  on  page  196  of  the  History  of  Newbury,  quotes 
from  a  letter  written  by  William  Moody,  of  Byfield,  to  his 
brother-in-law.  Judge  Samuel  Sewall,  dated  F^eb.  17,  1725, 
as  follows  :  — 

Our  people  at  towne  are  going  to  build  another  meeting  house,  but 
intend  to  set  it  so  nigh  to  Mr.  Toppan's  (minister  at  the  first  Parish) 
that  I  fear  it  will  make  great  contention.  Newbury  are  great  sufferers 
this  day  for  what  have  happened  by  contending  about  the  place  of  a 
meeting  house. 

The  report  of  the  committee  of  the  General  Court  ap- 
pointed to  fi.x  the  bounds  of  the  proposed  parish  and  the 
action  of  the  court  thereon  were  as  follows  :  — 

At  a  Create  and  Cenaral  Court  or  Assembley  of  his  Majesties  Prov- 
ince, of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  New-England,  Held  November  3.  1728. 

Samuel  Thaxter,  Esq.,  from  the  Comity,  of  both  Houses  on  the 
Petition  of  several  Inhabitants  of  Newbury  first  Parish,  Caue  in  the 
following   Report,  viz  : 

Pursuant  to  an  order  of  the  Cenaral  Court  at  thair  Session  in  No- 
ueniber  1725,  in  answer  to  the  Petition  of  the  westerly  part  of  the  old 
Parish  in  Newbury  ordering  us  the  subscribers  to  view  the  scituation 
of  the  Peticioners  as  well  as  the  other  part  of  the  first  Parish  in  New- 
burv.  Especially  where  the  middle  diuiding  line  is  I'roposed  and  to 
hear  the  parties  therein,  Conferred  and  make  Report  thereon: 

In  obediance  to  the  said  order  upon  the  first  day  of  December  Curnt 
we  Repaired  to    Xewl)urv   and   hauing    Notified   the    Persons   Concernd. 


THIRD    PARISH  IN  NEWBURY  43 1 

we  Vewd  the  seuarall  parts  of  the  old  Presinct  and  the  Land  of  the  new 
proposed  Parish  and  Report  as  follows,  That  the  Lane  called  Chandler  s 
Lane  shall  be  the  diuding  Line  between  the  old  and  new  Parishes,  and 
to  continue  as  the  old  or  first  Parish  has  already  Granted  on  the  nme- 
teenth  of  June  1722.      Hut  in  as  much  as  eight  families  that  live  near 
the  said  line   and   on  the   South   Side  there  of,   viz.   Edward   Sargant, 
Jams   Crocker,   Isaac  Hall,  Joseph   Swasey,   Stephen   Presson,  Wdham 
Allen.  John  Creenlife  Jun.   and   Isaac   Miricke  have  desired  to  be  set 
to  the   New   Parish,  and   Som  of  them  have  been  at  charge  in  building 
the  New  Meeting  House,  the   Comity  are  humbly  of  opinion  that  the 
said  eio-ht  families  with  their  estats  adjoyning  shall   be   set  to   the   new 
Parish'during  the  Courts  pleasure.      Also  where  as  there  is  a  considera- 
ble  number   of   families   on  the   Northerly   Side  of   the   New   Meeting 
House,  that  have  entred  thair  decents  against  being  joyned  to  the  New 
Parish,  the  Comitv  are  of  opinion  that  thay  be  joined  to  the  New  Par- 
ish     Prouided  the  said  Parish  do  accomodate  them  with  Sutabel  Pews, 
or   Seats  for  thair  reception,  without  thair  being  at  any  Charge  tliere for. 
December   8.    1725:    William   Rogers,    Daniel   Epes,    Samuel   Thaxter. 
Thomas  Choat,  Spencer  Phips.  ,    ,        ,,  thnt 

In  Counsel  read  and  ordered  that  this  Report  be  accepted,  and  that 
the  I  and  within  the  Bounds  in  the  Said  Report  Discribed,  be  sett  of  a 
distinct  and  seprate  Precinct,  and  that  the  Inhabitance  thereof  be 
vested  with  the  powers  and  Priuileges  that  the  Inhabitants  of  other 
Precincts  are  Vested  with : 

In  the  House  of  Representatives  Read  and  Concurd. 

Consented  to:  William   Dummer. 

The  meetin-house  of  the  new  parish  was  erected  in  the 
centre  of  a  triangular  piece  of  land  now  known  as  Market 
Square,  Newburyport.  It  was  a  commodious  structure,  sixty 
feet  in  len-th  and  forty-five  feet  in  breadth,  with  a  steeple  on 
the  end  confronting  the  river  and  the  pulpit  at  the  opposite 
end  It  was  dedicated  June  25,  172 5,  Rev.  John  Tufts,  of 
the    Second    Parish    in    Newbury,   preaching  the   dedicatory 

sermon.  . 

Rev  John  Lowell,  of  Boston,  who  supplied  the  pulpit  from 
June  27,  was  invited,  Aug.  23,  1725,  to  take  charge  of  the 
parish  as  its  settled  minister.  At  this  date  the  church  was 
unoro-anized  ;  and  there  is  no  record  of  a  parish  meetmg  until 
Dec  ^9,  1725,  when  it  was  "voted  to  provide  a  parsonage 
house  for  Rev.  M^  Lowell  or  give  him  two  hundred  pounds 
on  condition  of  his  settling  and  continuing  with  us." 


432  OULD    A-RIVIWRY 

Jan.  12,  1725-6,  Re\-.  Moses  Male,  of  liyficlcl,  preached 
in  the  Third  Parish  nieetinL;'-house  ;  and  a  church  was  i;ath- 
ered  by  Rev.  Caleb  Cushing,  of  Salisbury,  who  drew  up  the 
church  covenant.  This  covenant,  or  confession  of  faith,  was 
signed  by  Richard  Kent,  Benaiah  Titcomb,  William  Titcomb, 
Moses  Titcomb,  Stephen  Greenleaf,  Henry  Sewall,  Abraham 
Toppan,  and  man}'  others. 

Jan.  ig,  1725-6,  Rev.  John  Lowell  was  ordained  j^astor 
of  the  church.  The  ordination  services  were  conducted  by 
Rev.  John  Tufts,  of  the  Second  Parish,  who  made  the  open- 
ing prayer  ;  Rew  Thomas  P'oxcroft,  of  Boston,  who  preached 
from  2  Corinthians,  12th  chapter,  13th,  14th,  and  15th  verses  ; 
Rev.  Moses  Hale,  of  Byfield,  who  gave  the  right  hand  of 
fellowship  ;  and  Rev.  Caleb  Cushing,  of  Salisbury,  who  gave 
the  charge. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  parish  held  Jan.  31,  1725-6,  it  was 
"voted  that  Richard  Kent,  ICsq.,  Deacon  William  Noyes, 
and  Lieut.  Benaiah  Titcomb  shall  have  power  to  make  sale 
of  the  house  and  land  lately  bought  of  Mr.  Thomas  Brown, 
or  any  part  of  the  same,  for  the  use  of  the  new  parish  in 
Newbury,  if  the  Rev.  John  Lowle  does  not  care  to  accept  of 
the  same."  At  a  subsequent  meeting  held  May  10,  1726, 
it  was  "voted  that  the  Rev.  John  Lowle  shall  have  the 
house  and  land  bought  of  Thomas  Brown,  he  paying  the 
money  and  the  said  Parish  to  pay  him  ^200."  For  further 
details  relating  to  this  conveyance  the  reader  is  referred  to 
the  sketch  of  the  Lowell  house,  page  449. 

May  23,  1727,  the  parish  x'oted  to  purchase  a  bell  weigh- 
ing about  four  hundred  pounds,  and  also  "voted  that  Jona- 
than Woodman  should  treat  with  some  gentlemen  in  Boston 
tf)  send  for  a  bell  for  said  Parish."  iuirl}'  in  the  month  of 
February,  1727-8,  the  bell  liad  exidently  arrived,  and  had 
been  hung  in  the  belfry,  for  on  the  twenty-first  da)'  of  the 
month  the  assessors  were  authorized  to  agree  with  Ambrose 
lierry  to  ring  the  bell  till  the  March  meeting;  and  March  19, 
1727-8,  it  was  "voted  tJKil  the  bell  of  the  'Phird  I'arish  be 
Rung  at  nine  of  the  clock." 

Nov.  26,  1729,  the   palish  "  \-oted  that  the  Comit}'  to  looke 


THIRD    PARISH   IX  XKWBURY  433 

out  for  a  place  for  a  schoole  house  be  a  comity  to  lookc  out 
a  place  for  a  burial  place."  William  Johnson  and  William 
Titcomb  were  appointed  on  this  committee.  At  a  meeting" 
held  March  17,  1729-30,  the  school-house  was  located 
on  High  Street,  between  h^ish  Street  (now  State  Street) 
and  Queen  Street  (now  Market  Street)  and  the  land  on  the 
westerly  side  of  Frog  Pond  was  taken  for  a  burying  ground, 
and  ordered  to  be  enclosed  with  a  board  fence.  At  the  same 
meeting  it  was  also  "  voated  that  if  any  Gentleman  in  our 
Parish  will  appear  to  higher  a  School  Master,  thay  shall  have 
our  Parishes  part  of  the  money  that  is  to  be  Raised  in  the 
Generall,  by  the  7'own,  provided  tha}'  do  keep  a  Gramar 
School  a  year  in  sum  Convenient  place  in  s'd  Parish,  and 
any  person  of  our  Parish  shall  have  Liberty  to  send  their 
children,  provided  thay  do  pay  for  thair  Schooling  a  Groat 
a  week." 

Dec.  II,  1734,  the  parish  "Voated  that  Richard  Kent, 
Esq.,  Joseph  Atkins,  Esc}.,  and  Abiel  Somerby  be  a  comity 
to  recover  the  Interest  money  of  the  fifty  thousand  pounds 
which  the  selectmen  has  given  under  their  hands  to  pay  for 
the  use  of  the  third  Parish  in  Newbury." 

"March  10,  1734-5,  Voated  that  the  Interest  Money  of  the 
fifty  thousand  pounds  which  the  third  Parish  has  in  their 
hands  shall  be  Improved  for  to  git  a  clocke  for  sd  Parish. 

"Voated  that  Cap'  William  Johnson  and  doc'  Nathan  Hale 
should  see  to  git  a  clocke  for  s''  Parish." 

This  interest  money  was  probably  derived  from  the  issue 
of  bills  of  credit  under  an  act  passed  by  the  General  Court 
March  31,  1721,  entitled  "An  act  for  the  making  and  emit- 
ting the  sum  of  P'ifty  Thousand  Pounds  in  bills  of  credit  on 
this  Province  in  such  manner  as  in  the  said  act  is  hereafter 
expressed."  By  the  provisions  of  this  act  the  several  towns 
in  the  Province  were  authorized  to  loan  a  certain  proportion 
of  the  public  funds  on  good  security,  and  it  was  also  provided 
that  the  income  from  this  loan  should  be  used  in  the  payment 
of  local  public  charges. 

As  the  population  of  the  town  increased  in  numbers,  the 
demand  for  seats   in   the  meeting-house  increased  ;  and   the 


434  OULD   NEWBURY 

parish  was  at  Icnj^th  comiDcllcd  to  furnish  an  additional 
supply.  At  a  meeting  held  March  25,  1736,  it  was  "  Voated 
that  Cap'  William  Jonson,  Cap'  John  Greenlef,  Joshua 
Beebe,  Lieut  Abraham  Toppan,  doc'  ICnoch  Sawyer,  Benjamin 
Little,  Samuel  Plumer,  Abiel  Somerby,  Cutting  Moody, 
Joseph  Titcomb,  Col.  Richard  Kent,  be  a  comity  to  consider 
and  treat  about  inlarging"  said  meetin  house ;  aded  to  the 
Comity  Benjamin  Greenlef  and  Lieut.  Moses  Gerish  and 
William  Titcomb,  Ju''.  Voated  that  the  Comity  abo\e  chosen 
have  full  power  to  proceed  in  Inlarging  said  meeting  house 
thirty  five  foot  back  in  the  best  method  thay  can,  And  to 
agree  with  worke  men  to  parfect  the  finishing  of  sd  house 
as  soon  as  may  be,  and  also  to  dispose  of  the  Pews  to  parsons 
belonging  to  the  Parish,  \\\  order  to  Raise  money  to  defray 
the  charges." 

With  this  addition  the  meeting-house  must  have  been  a 
large  and  commodious  building,  measuring  eighty  feet  by 
sixty  feet,  with  a  gallery  on  one  side,  and  probably  on  three 
sides,  for  the  accommodation  of  the  rapidly  increasing 
number  of  worshippers.  In  September,  1740,  Rev.  George 
Whitefield  preached  his  first  sermon  in  Newbury  to  an  im- 
mense audience  that  occupied  all  the  available  space  in  this 
meeting-house. 

That  the  parish  was  earnest  and  active  in  its  efforts  to 
provide  for  the  support  of  the  public  schools  is  evident  from 
the  frequent  mention  of  the  subject  in  the  parish  records. 

March  28,  1740,  it  was  "Voated  that  the  assessors  do 
Raise  one  Hundred  and  twenty  pounds  uppon  the  Parish  for 
two  schools,  to  be  Equally  divided  betweene  them,  for  gram- 
mar schooles  and  ft)r  Radeders  and  Righters  and  Sif erring. 
Voated  that  one  of  the  schools  be  kept  in  the  school  house, 
and  the  other  schoole  to  be  kept  betweene  Ordway's  Lane 
and  Woodman's  Lane,  and  the  officers  to  appoint  the  place. 
Voated  that  AP  Joshua  Mood)'  should  be  one  of  the  school 
masters  for  the  year  Insuing  if  he  will  take  \\\)  with  the  terms 
proj^osed  and  to  help  at  the  school  house. 

"  X'oatetl  that  Mr.  Lenard  Gotten  shoulil  be  the  other 
school  master  for  the  year  Insuing,  if  he  shall  take  up  with 
the  terms  proposed,  M""  Gotten  accejjts  of  the  school." 


THIRD    PARISH  IN  XEIVBURY  435 

The  care  and  control  of  the  "  Old  Hill  Burying-  Ground" 
is  also  often  referred  to  in  the  records.  March  25,  1741,  it 
was  "  voted  that  Dr.  Joshua  Beck  and  Ambrose  Berry  be  a 
comity  to  take  care  that  the  Burying  place  in  s'd  Parish  be 
fenced  in  with  Rocks." 

In  1743,  thirty-eight  members  of  the  parish  asked  for 
letters  of  dismissal  in  order  to  join  the  new  society  that  a 
few  years  later  completed  its  organization,  and  invited  Rev. 
Jonathan  Parsons  to  become  its  pastor.  After  repeated 
efforts  to  secure  a  favorable  answer  to  their  request  the 
disaffected  brethren  formally  withdrew  from  communion  in 
the  Third  Parish,  and  in  October,  1746,  were  admitted  to 
membership   in   the   First   Presbyterian   Church. 

At  this  time,  the  services  in  the  Third  Parish  on  the  Lord's 
Day  were  exceedingly  plain  and  simple,  beginning  with  a 
long  prayer,  followed  by  the  singing  of  a  psalm,  then  by  a 
sermon  occupying  one  or  two  hours  in  the  delivery,  and 
closing  with  a  short  prayer  and  the  benediction.  An  inter- 
mission of  an  hour  was  allowed  for  the  mid-day  meal.  The 
exercises  were  then  resumed,  and  the  afternoon  service  pro- 
ceeded in  substantially  the  same  order  from  the  opening 
prayer  to  the  final  benediction. 

The  reading  of  the  Bible  was  not  considered  essential  or 
even  justifiable  in  public  worship.  The  rubrics  of  the  Church 
of  Kngland  made  it  obligatory  upon  her  clergy  to  read  a 
certain  prescribed  portion  upon  holy  days  and  fast  days  ;  but 
the  men  who  had  separated  from  the  Church  were  not  dis- 
posed to  follow  her  teachings  in  this  respect,  although  their 
descendants  in  the  nineteenth  century  insist  that  the  Word 
of  God  shall  be  read  not  only  in  the  meeting-houses  on  Sun- 
day, but  in  the  public  schools  on  every  other  day  in  the 
week.  Not  until  the  year  1750  did  the  reading  of  the  Script- 
ures become  a  part  of  the  established  order  of  religious 
worship   in   the  Third  Parish.* 

For  several  years  after  the  organization  ,of  the  Presbyterian 
Society  and  the  settlement  of  Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons  the 
tax  levied  upon  the  members  of  that   society  for  the  support 

*  In  the  First  Parish  the  Scriptures  were  not  read  at  divine  service  imtil  the  year  1769. 


436  OULD   A'EIVBURY 

and  maintenance  of  ])ul)lic  worship  in  the  meeting-house, 
where  Rev.  Mr.  Lowell  officiated,  was  stoutly  resisted.  At 
length  an  amicable  agreement  was  reached,  which  resulted 
in  the  passage  of  an  act,  by  the  General  Court,  Jan. 
29,  1752,  entitled  "An  act  to  impower  the  proprietors  of 
the  meeting  house  in  the  First  Parish  in  Salem,  where  the 
Reverend  Mr.  John  Sparhawk  now  officiates,  and  also  the 
proprietors  of  the  meeting  house  in  the  Third  Parish  in 
Newbury,  where  the  Reverend  Mr.  John  Lowell  officiates, 
to  raise  Money  for  defraying  ministerial  and  other  necessary 
charges."  By  the  provisions  of  this  act  the  proprietors  were 
authorized  to  levy  a  tax  on  the  pews  in  Rev.  Mr.  Lowell's 
meeting  house,  and  to  raise  such  sums  of  money  as  should  be 
agreed  upt)n  at  any  meeting  legally  called.  They  were  also 
authorized  to  assess  upon  pewholders,  according  to  their  cir- 
cumstances and  ability,  whatever  balance  might  be  required 
to  meet  the  expenses  of  the  parish  over  and  above  the  sum 
received  from  the  tax  on  pews  ;  "  and  all  persons  not  attend- 
ing publick  worship  in  said  house  as  well  as  those  who  do  " 
were  freed  from  parish  taxes.  This  act  continued  in  force 
for  three  years,  and  was  then  extended  for  three  years 
longer.  It  was  subsequently  renewed  from  time  to  time 
until  the  year  17S0,  when  the  new  State  constitution  was 
adopted,  which  provided  that  all  money  raised  for  the  sup- 
port of  public  worship  should  be  paid  according  to  the  in- 
struction or  request  of  the  tax-payer  "for  the  support  of  the 
public  teacher  or  teachers  of  his  own  religious  sect  or  de- 
nomination, provided  there  be  any  on  whose  instruction  he 
attends."  Armed  with  the  authority  conferred  by  the  legis- 
lative act  of  1752,  the  proprietors  of  the  Third  Parish  meet- 
ing-house were  able  to  jjrovide  the  funds  needed  to  meet 
the  annual  expenses  without  further  irritation  or  annoyance. 
Notwithstanding  the  deep  religious  interest  pre\'alent  at 
that  time,  and  the  reverent  attention  given  to  religious  in- 
struction by  the  men  of  that  day,  it  is  exident  that  some  of 
the  younger  members  of  the  communit}-  who  attended  Sun- 
day serxices  in  the  Thiicl  Parish  meeting-house  were  not 
absolute  models  of   pi'opi'ict)'.      Possibl)',  the\'  transmitted   to 


THIRD   2'ARISH  IX  XEIVBURY  437 

the  boys  of  the  present  generation  some  of  their  sinfnl  pro- 
cli\ities.  At  all  events,  their  behavior  was  severely  criticised  ; 
and  June  20,  175  i,  the  parish  voted  "that  Joshua  Pillsbury 
and  Stephen  Moody  and  Paul  Shackford  and  Edmund  Bart- 
lett  take  care  of  the  Boyes  that  Play  at  meeting." 

In  an  interleaved  almanac  now  in  the  possession  of  Mrs. 
Alexander  B.  P'orbes,  of  Fatherland  P'arm,  the  Rev.  Moses 
Parsons    wrote  :  — 

Feb.  9.  1 754.  a  thunder  shower  in  the   evening  with   hail   and   rain. 

The   lightening  struck  ye   steeple    of  AP'   Lowell's   meeting  house   and 

shattered  it  very  much,  and  did  some  damage  to  ye  house  and  to  ye 
windows  of  ye   houses   near. 

Soon  after  this  event,  Benjamin  Franklin  visited  Newbury, 
and  made  a  careful  examination  of  the  premises.  In  a  letter 
to  M.  Dalibard  at  Paris,  dated  Philadelphia,  June  29,  1755, 
and  read  before  the  Royal  Society  of  London  Dec.  18,  1755, 
Franklin  wrote  :  — 

I  thank  you  for  communicating  M.  de  Buffon's  relation  of  the  effect 
of  lightning  at  Dijon,  on  the  7"'  of  June  last.  In  return,  give  me  leave 
to  relate  an  instance  I  lately  saw  of  the  same  kind.  Being  in  the  town 
of  Newbury,  in  New  England,  in  November  last,  I  was  shown  the  effect 
of  lightning  on  their  church,  which  had  been  struck  a  few  months 
before.  The  steeple  was  a  scjuare  tower  of  wood,  reaching  seventv  feet 
up  from  the  ground  to  the  place  where  the  bell  hung,  over  which  rose 
a  taper  spire,  of  wood  likewise,  reaching  seventy  feet  higher,  to  the  vane 
of  the  weather-cock.  Near  the  bell  was  tixed  an  iron  hammer  to  strike 
the  hours;  and  from  the  tail  of  the  hammer  a  wire  went  down  through 
a  small  gimlet-hole  in  the  Hoor  that  the  bell  stood  upon,  and  through  a 
second  floor  in  like  manner:  then  horizontallv  under  and  near  the 
plastered  ceiling  of  that  second  floor,  till  it  came  near  a  plastered  wall ; 
then  down  by  the  side  of  that  wall  to  a  clock,  which  stood  about  twenty 
feet  below  the  bell.  The  wire  was  not  bigger  than  a  common  knitting 
needle.  The  spire  was  split  all  to  pieces  by  the  lightning,  and  the  parts 
flung  in  all  directions  over  the  Stjuare  in  which  the  church  stood,  so 
that  nothing  remained  above  the  bell. 

The  lightning  passed  between  the  hammer  and  the  clock  in  the 
above-mentioned  wire,  without  hurting  either  of  the  floors,  or  having 
any  effect  upon  them  (except  making  the  gimlet  holes,  through  which 
the  wire  passed,  a  little  bigger),  and  without  hurting  the  plastered  wall, 
or  any  part  of  the  building,  so  far  as  the  aforesaid  wire  and  the  pendu- 


438  OULD    NEWBURY 

lum-wire  of  tlie  clock  extended :  which  latter  wire  was  about  the  thick- 
ness of  a  goose-quill.  From  the  end  of  the  pendulum,  down  quite  to 
the  ground,  the  building  wa.s  exceedingly  rent  and  damaged,  and  some 
stones  in  the  foundation-wall  torn  out  and  thrown  to  the  distance  of 
twenty  or  thirty  feet.  No  part  of  the  aforementioned  long  small  wire, 
between  the  clock  and  the  hammer,  could  be  found,  except  about  two 
inches  that  hung  to  the  tail  of  the  hammer,  and  about  as  much  that  was 
fastened  to  the  clock  :  the  rest  being  exploded,  and  its  particles  dissi- 
pated in  smoke  and  air,  as  gunpowder  is  by  common  tire,  and  had  left 
only  a  black  smutty  track  on  the  plastering,  three  or  four  inches  broad, 
darkest  in  the  middle  and  fainter  towards  the  edges,  all  along  the  ceil- 
ing, under  which  it  passed,  and  down  the  wall.  These  were  the  effects 
and  appearances  on  which  I  would  only  make  the  following  remarks, 
yiz.  :  — 

I.  That  lightning,  in  its  passage  through  a  building,  will  leave  wood 
to  pass  as  far  as  it  can  in  metal,  and  not  enter  the  wood  again  till  the 
conductor  of  metal  ceases.  And  the  same  I  have  observed  in  other 
instances,  as  to  walls  of  brick  or  stone. 

1.  The  quantity  of  lightning  that  passed  through  this  steeple  must 
have  been  very  great,  by  its  effects  on  the  lofty  spire  above  the  bell, 
and  on  the  square  tower,  all  below  the  end  of  the  clock-pendulum. 

3.  Great  as  this  quantity  was,  it  was  conducted  by  a  small  wire  and 
a  clock-pendulum,  without  the  least  damage  to  the  building  so  far  as 
they  extended. 

4.  The  pendulum  rod.  being  of  a  sutificient  thickness,  conducted  the 
lightning  without  damage  to  itself;  but  the  small  wire  was  utterly 
destroyed. 

5.  Though  the  small  wire  \vas  itself  destroyed,  yet  it  had  conducted 
the   lightning  with   safety   to  the   building. 

6.  And  from  the  whole  it  seems  probable  that,  if  even  such  a  small 
wire  had  been  extended  from  the  spindle  of  the  vane  to  the  earth  before 
the  storm,  no  damage  would  have  been  done  to  the  steeple  by  that 
stroke  of  lightning,  though  the  wire  itself  had  been  destroyed. 

B.    Fr.axklix. 

The  letter  from  which  the  above  extract  is  taken  will  be 
found  in  the  second  Nolimie,  pag-es  405  to  409  inclusive,  of 
the  Complete  Works  of  Benjamin  h'ranklin,  edited  !))•  John 
Bigelow,   and   ])id)Hshetl   in    1887. 

In  1755,  when  Colonel  Moses  Titcomb,  and  others,  enlisted 
in  the  e.\]:)edition  a<;'ainst  the  h'rench  at  Crown  Point,  were 
ordered  to  report  for  dut}',  a  crowtled  coni;"rei;"ation  assembled 
in  the  Third  Paiish   meetinL;-house  to  listen   to  a   sermon   by 


THIRD    PARISH  IX  XEIVBURY  439 

Rev.  John  Lowell,  from  the  text,  •'  For  the  Lord  your  God 
is  he  that  goeth  with  you,  to  fight  for  you  against  }'our 
enemies,  to  save  you."  And  a  few  months  later,  in  the  same 
place,  services  were  held  to  commemorate  the  courage  and 
heroism  of  Colonel  Titcomb,  who  was  slain  in  battle  Sep- 
tember 8th  of  that  year.  \x\  1759,  Quebec  was  captured,  and 
the  citizens  of  Newbury  had  a  day  of  rejoicing.  An  ox  was 
killed,  properly  dressed,  and  broiled  on  a  huge  gridiron  on  the 
vacant  land  on  the  northwesterly  side  of  this  meeting-house. 

Rev.  John  Lowell  died  May  15,  1767;  and  May  11,  1768, 
Rev.  Thomas  Cary,  of  Charlestown,  was  ordained  pastor  of 
the  Third  Parish.  At  this  time  some  members  of  the  con- 
gregation were  in  favor  of  inviting  Rev.  Christopher  B.  Marsh, 
of  Boston,  to  take  charge  of  the  parish,  but,  being  in  a 
minority,  were  outvoted,  and  finally  withdrew  and  formed 
another  religious  society  with  a  house  of  worship  on  Titcomb 
Street,  opposite  Brown's  Square. 

Under  the  pastoral  care  of  Rev.  Thomas  Cary  the  Third 

Parish  was  prosperous  and  active,  especially  during  the  War 

of    the   Revolution.      Soon    after    peace  was  declared    efforts 

were  made  to  repair  and  impro\'e  the  old  meeting-house.      A 

committee,  appointed    to    consider    the    subject,   reported  as 

follows  :  — 

April  21.  1785. 

The  Committee  appointed  by  the  proprietors  of  the  house  of  worship 
where  the  Rev''  Mr.  Cary  is  Pastor,  to  examine  said  house  &  consider 
of  the  expediency  of  Repairing  it.  do  Report  that  they  find  the  House 
in  so  defective  a  State  thro  every  part  that  they  cannot  advise  to  any 
further  Repairs  than  what  may  be  found  necessary  to  prevent  the 
water  from  Droping  into  the  Seats  &  pews,  as  any  Further  Repairs  in 
their  Oppinion  would  be  Money  badly  appropriated  on  Said  House; 
they  also  Recommend  to  the  proprietors  to  have  the  Spire  Taken  Down 
as  Low  as  the  Top  of  the  Ogee  Roof,  it  being  Unsafe  in  their  Oppinion 
to  stand  any  Longer.  With  Respect  to  the  Means  proper  to  be  Taken 
for  Building  a  New  Meeting-house,  they  beg  Leave  to  refer  the  matter 
to  the  Further  Consideration  of  the  proprietors.  The  Committee  being 
unanimous  in  the  Above  Report  affix  their  Signatures. 

Stephen  Hooper. 
Sam'l  Bacheldor, 
Moses  Frazier, 
&  others. 


440  OULD   NEIVBUKY 

On  Suiulav,  ]\Iarch  9,  1788,  after  morning  service,  Rev. 
Thomas  Caiv  was  stricken  down  with  i)aralysis,  and  never 
fully  recovered  from  the  attack.  He  was  able  occasionally 
to  attend  to  his  clerical  duties,  but  it  became  necessary  to 
furnish  him  with  a  colleague  ;  and  Rev.  John  Andrews,  of 
Hingham,  was  ordained  as  associate  minister  Dec.  10,  17S8. 

At  this  time  many  of  the  prominent  citizens  of  the  town 
were  members  of  the  society,  and  deeply  interested  in  its 
religious  work.  H<jn.  Theophilus  Bradbury,  afterward  justice 
of  the  supreme  court  of  Massachusetts,  having  remoxed 
from  Portland,  Me.,  was  admitted  to  membership  in  the 
church  Sept.  23,  1788;  and  Theophilus  Parsons,  the  distin- 
guished law)'er  and  jurist,  was  for  many  years  one  of  its 
strongest  and  most  influential  friends  and  supporters.  At  a 
later  date  the  name  of  Hon.  Caleb  Gushing  is  found  among 
the  worshippers  in  the  Third  Parish  meeting-house,  and  for 
three  or  four  years  in  succession  he  was  elected  proprietors' 
clerk. 

During  the  year  1794,  the  records  of  the  parish  indicate 
that  some  needed  repairs  were  made  on  the  old  and  some- 
what dilapidated  house  of  worshi]) ;  and  at  the  same  time 
it  was  "  voted  to  make  such  alterations  in  the  front  gallery 
as  may  be  necessary  for  the  Reception  of  the  organ.""* 

Oct.  19,  1798,  the  parish  "  voted  that  Hon.  Theophilus 
Bradbur)',  Hon.  Benjamin  Greenleaf,  and  Capt.  James  Kettell 
be  a  Committee  to  enquire  into  the  Proprietors'  title  to  the 
land  under  &  adjoining  their  meeting  house,  and  report 
thereon  together  with  the  e\-idences  of  that  title '"  ;  and  on 
the  same  day  James  Prince,  Theophilus  Bradbury,  Jr.,  and 
Gilnian  White  were  appointed  a  committee  "to  see  what 
place  or  places  can  be  obtained  wdiereon  to  build  a  meeting 
house  and  on  what  terms,  and  what  sum  may  be  obtained 
for  the  old  meeting  house  and  land  under  and  adjoining 
the  same  provided  a  Title  with  warranty  be  given  by  the 
Proprietors." 

In  December  of   the  same  )ear  the   connnittee  report   that 

*Caleb  CusliiiiK,  in  his  Histoiy  of  Ncul)urypiirt,  iiage  51,  says,  ■"  It  is  iiieiuioned  in  the  news- 
papers of  tlie  clay  that  Nov.  6,  1796,  the  church  organ,  built  by  Dr.  Josiah  l.eavitt,  of  Iniston, 
was  put  up  in  the  meeting-h<iuse  of  this  sr>ciety." 


THIRD    PARISH  IN  NEWBURY  44 1 

"they  find  no  vote  or  grant  respecting  the  land  covered  by 
the  meeting"  house,  but  the  Proprietors  have  been  in  quiet 
and  peaceable  possession  of  the  same  for  more  than  sixty 
years,  they  have  acquired  a  good,  lawful,  and  complete  title 
thereto.  The  triangular  piece  of  land  adjoining  the  north- 
■  westerly  side  of  said  house  was  purchased  by  the  Proprietors 
of  Jeremiah  Pearson  and  others  on  the  21"'  day  of  August, 
1765,  as  by  their  deed  of  warranty  appears." 

The  deed  to  which  reference  is  made  in  the  above  report 
was  recorded  in  the  Essex  Registry  of  Deeds,  book  134, 
page  26,  and  reads  as  follows:  — 

Jeremiah  Pierson,  Joiner,  Samuel  Gerrish,  Joiner,  William  Daven- 
port, innholder,  &  uxor  Sarah,  Anthony  Gwynn,  merchant,  &  uxor 
Mary,  &  Abigail  Stapleton,  widow,  all  of  Newburyport  for  £11  x'^"  4'', 
paid  by  the  proprietors  of  the  Meeting  house  in  Newburyport  where 
the  Rev''  Mr.  John  Lowell  now  officiates,  convey  to  Thomas  Moody, 
makster.  Cutting  Bartlett,  cordwainer,  &  John  Newman,  physician,  all 
of  s'd  Newburyport,  being  a  Committee  of  said  Proprietors,  "  a  certain 
triangular  piece  of  land  lying  on  the  back  of  said  meeting  house  & 
containing  six  rods  of  land,  be  the  same  more  or  less,  bounded  by  a  two 
rod  way  northerly  measuring  four  rods  &  by  a  two  rod  way  south- 
westerly measuring  four  rods,  &  on  the  other  side  l^y  the  aforesaid 
meeting  house  there  measuring  seventy  six  feet." 

This  land  was  conveyed  to  Jeremiah  Pierson  and  others 
Nov.  19,  1750,  by  a  deed  recorded  in  book  97,  page  17, 
substantially   as  follows  :  — 

John  March,  Joseph  Lunt,  and  John  Brown,  Junior,  committee  of  the 
Proprietors  of  Common  lands  in  Newbury,  by  a  vote  passed  at  the 
meeting  of  the  Proprietors  held  May  13,  1743,  convey  to  Capt.  Moses 
(lerrish,  Jeremiah  Pierson,  Jacob  Noyes,  and  Samuel  Gerrish,  all  of 
Newbury,  for  a  public  use,  six  rods  of  land  in  Newbury,  to  set  or  build 
a  school  house  and  watch  house  upon  or  any  other  public  use  that  they 
shall  see  cause  to  put  said  land  to. 

After  a  prolonged  conference  with  the  authorities  of  the 
town,  and  with  citizens  who  were  interested  in  securing  the 
parish  land  for  a  public  square,  the  proprietors  under  date  of 
April  24,  1800,  voted  as  follows  :  — 


442  OULD   NEWBURY 

As  the  Meeting  House  belonging  to  this  Propriety  is  ancient  and 
defective  and  incapable  of  suitable  Repairs  ;  and  as  this  Propriety  are 
seized  in  Fee  simple  of  the  land  under  and  adjoining  the  said  House, 
the  same  land  being  in  a  Triangular  Form,  and  Bounded  Southeasterly 
on  State  Street,  Northerly  on  Merrimack  Street,  and  Westerly  on  a 
street  leading  from  State  Street  by  the  Westerly  corner  of  the  said 
House  to  Merrimack  Street,  and  the  same  land  being  inconveniently 
situated  for  the  erecting  of  another  Meeting  House,  therefore  it  is 

]'oted,  that  this  Propriety  will  sell  and  dispose  of  the  said  House  and 
land,  reserving  the  cellar  Wall  and  Underpinning  of  the  said  House,  the 
Materials  of  which  the  Pews  are  built,  the  Bell.  Clocks.  Organ.  I-^lectri- 
cal  Rod  and  Weathercock. 

At  the  same  meeting  they  appointed  a  committee,  consi.st- 
ing  of  Hon.  Theophilus  Bradbiuy,  Captain  James  Kettell, 
and  Mr.  Leonard  Smith,  to  select  a  suitable  lot  of  land  for 
the  new  meeting-house,  and  report  at  a  future  meeting  of  the 
proprietors.  This  committee  was  also  authorized  to  draw 
up  a  plan  and  make  estimates  of  the  probable  cost  of  the 
building  completed,  and  Theophilus  Parsons  was  requested 
to  apply  to  the  legislature  for  an  act  to  confirm  the  doings 
of  the  meeting  and  to  vest  in  the  proprietors  certain  rights 
and  powers  petitioned  for.  Ebenezer  Stocker,  Nathan  Hoyt, 
and  Joshua  Carter  were  appointed  a  committee  to  take  a 
deed  of  the  land  when  purchased  and  to  superintend  the 
building  of  the  new  meeting-house. 

May  2  2,  1800,  this  last-named  committee  was  directed  to 
purchase  of  Miss  Elizabeth  Greenleaf  a  lot  of  land  on  Pleas- 
ant Street  in  Newburyport,  measuring  nine  rods  in  front 
and  nine  rods  and  thirteen  links  in  depth,  containing  about 
eighty-two  rods,  commonly  called  the  Rock  lot,  on  the  best 
terms  obtainable,  not  to  exceed  JiXi  1  5.s".  per  rod  ;  and  June  5 
this  committee  was  directed  to  build  the  meeting-house* 
according  to  the  plans  submitted,  "  with  a  cellar,  a  Portico 
or  Piazza,  and  a  handsome  Helfr\-  antl  .SjMre,"  and  the  mem- 
bership of  the  committee  w:is  enlarged  b)'  the  a])piiintment 
of    John    (jreenleaf. 

In  1764,  the  town  of  Newbui^port  was  incorpoi'ated,  and 
the  Third  Parish  in  Newbiu')'  was  subsequenth'  known  as 
the    l'"irst    Parish    in    Newbur)|)ort.      l*\"b.    22,    1794,   se\eral 


THIRD    PARISH  IN  NEWBURY  443 

societies  in  the  town  were,  by  an  act  of  the  General  Court, 
made  corporations  for  the  purpose  of  holding  real  estate 
and  other  property  :  and  the  proprietors  of  this  meeting-house 
were  authorized  to  provide  for  the  support  and  maintenance 
of  public  worship,  under  the  name  of  "  The  First  Religious 
Society  of  Newburyport."  By  an  additional  act  passed  June 
12,  1800,  the  members  of  the  society  were  authorized  to  sell 
their  old  meeting-house,  purchase  land,  and  erect  a  new  build- 
ing. "The  sale  of  the  old  meeting-house  and  land  shall  not 
in  any  manner  affect  the  existence  of  the  first  religious 
society  of  Newburyport  as  a  corporation,  nor  its  powers,  rights, 
or  duties  ;  but  the  same  corporation  shall  be  deemed  and 
holden  in  the  law  to  have  the  same  existence  and  continuance 
with  the  same  powers,  rights,  and  duties  it  now  has,  whether 
the  members  thereof  attend  the  public  worship  of  God  in  the 
old  meeting-house  aforesaid,  or  in  the  new  meeting-house  to 
be  erected  as  aforesaid." 

July  10,  1800,  the  town  of  Newburyport  voted  to  purchase 
the  land  under  and  adjoining  the  old  meeting-house,  and 
July  17  the  proprietors  of  the  Third  Parish  "Voted  that  the 
said  Proprietors  do  hereby  grant  and  agree  to  and  with  said 
Town  that  their,  the  said  Proprietors  land,  under  and  adjoin- 
ing their  said  House  of  Public  Worship,  shall  and  may  be 
laid  out  in  manner  as  the  Law  directs  as  and  for  a  Town 
Way  to  and  for  the  Use  of  said  Towm  forever,  the  said  Town 
paying  or  securing  the  payment  of  the  sum  of  eight  Thou- 
sand dollars  to  said  Proprietors  within  thirty  days  from  this 
date.  .  .  .  And  it  is  further  provided  that  said  Proprietors  do 
reserve  the  right  of  keeping  said  house  on  said  land  for  the 
purpose  of  Public  Worship  therein  until  the  first  day  of 
November,  1801,  and  shall  be  allowed  a  reasonable  time 
afterward  to  remove  the  same,  with  the  cellar  wall,  &c." 

The  deed  conveying  this  property  for  a  consideration  of 
$4,400,  from  "  The  Proprietors  of  the  First  Religious  Society 
in  Newburyport  "  to  the  town  of  Newbur}'port,  was  dated 
July  18,  1800,  and  recorded  in  the  Registry  of  Deeds,  book 
167,  leaf  20.  The  balance  required  to  make  up  the  sum  of 
$8,000  was  raised  by  voluntary  contributions  and  by  an 
assessment   on   the  owners  of   land  in   that   vicinity. 


THIRD    PARISH   IX   XEIVBURY  445 

Sept.  2  1,  1 80 1,  the  parish  appointed  a  committee  to  pur- 
chase a  lot  of  land  adjoining  the  new  meeting-house,  on  the 
northwesterly  side,  provided  it  can  be  obtained  at  a  reason- 
able price  ;  and  the  same  day  authorized  Ebenezer  Stocker, 
Nathan  Hoyt,  Joshua  Carter,  Jacob  Perkins,  and  Gilman 
White,  "  to  dispose  of  the  old  bell  and  jnirchase  a  new  one, 
not  exceeding  fifteen  hundred  pounds'  weight,  either  at 
Boston,  London,  or  elsewhere  as  the  committee  may  think 
best." 

Services  were  held  in  the  old  meeting-house  for  the  last 
time  on  Sunday,  Sept.  27,  1801.  On  that  occasion  Rev. 
Thomas  Gary  preached  an  interesting  sermon  that  was  after- 
ward printed  at  the  request  of  his  parishioners.  The  next 
day  the  building  was  taken  down  ;  and  the  land  under  and 
adjoining  the  same  became  public  property,  and  is  now  known 
as  Market  Square. 

The  new  meeting-house  on  Pleasant  Street  was  dedicated 
Oct.  I,  1 80 1,  with  appropriate  religious  exercises.  Rev.  John 
Andrews  preaching  the  dedicatory  sermon  from  the  text, 
"  Enter  into  his  gates  with  thanksgiving,  and  into  his  courts 
with  praise :  be  thankful  unto  him,  and  bless  his  name " 
(Psalm  c  :  4). 

On  the  twenty-third  day  of  December,  1802,  a  resolution 
of  thanks  was  adopted  and  entered  upon  the  records  in 
acknowledgment  of  the  faithful  and  important  services  ren- 
dered by  the  committee  specially  appointed  to  superintend 
its   erection. 

Rev.  Thomas  Gary  died  Nov.  24,  1808.  F"uneral  services 
were  held  in  the  new  meeting-house,  Rev.  John  Andrews 
preaching  a  sermon  appropriate  to  the  occasion,  which  was 
afterward  printed  by  order  of  the  parish. 

During  the  next  ten  or  fifteen  years  there  was  considerable 
uneasiness  and  dissatisfaction  among  the  members  of  the 
society,  aggravated  and  intensified  by  the  political  opinions 
and  doctrinal  views  occasionally  uttered  in  the  pulpit.  W'hile 
this  condition  of  affairs  lasted,  the  Sui\day  worshippers  gradu- 
ally diminished  in  number.  It  became  necessary,  however, 
for  those  who  desired  to  dissolve  their  connection  with  the 


446  OULD   NEWBURY 

parish  to  notify  the  clerk  in  a  legal  manner,  in  order  to 
escape  taxation  ;  and  frequent  communications  like  the  fol- 
lowing are  entered  upon  the  records  :  — 

Nkwburvport,  8"'  March,  1809. 

To  the  Clerk  of  the  thirst  Religious  Society  in  Newburyport. 

Presuming  that  1  may  be  better  and  more  particularly  acquainted 
and  instructed  in  the  principles  of  the  gospel  of  our  Lord,  under  the 
pastoral  care  of  the  Rev.  John  Giles  than  elsewhere,  1  have,  for  that 
and  other  special  reasons,  thought  proper  to  attend  to  devotional  wor- 
ship in  his  society  in  preference  to  that  of  the  First  Religious  Society 
in  Newburyport.  You  are  therefore  notified  that  1  am  no  longer  a 
member  of  that  society,  and  request  in  future  not  to  be  taxed  there  as 

^'■''^  Abel  Staxwood. 


Newburyport,  29  April,  1814. 

To  the  Clerk  of  the  First  Religious  Society  in  Newburyport. 

Sir,  Joseph  Marquand,  being  aggrieved  at  .Mr.  Andrews  I'ulpit  lieing 
a  V^ehickle  of  Slander  on  the  22'"'  February  and  4"'  of  July  annually 
against  the  Government  of  the  United  States,  wishes  to  withdraw  his 
name  from  the  Books  of  the  First  Religious  Society  in  Newburyport. 
and  does  hereby  give   notice  that   he   is   no  longer  a   member  of  said 

^"'^'^^>'-  Jos   Marqu.axd. 


,       1    /•      •  1     I'  Newi'.urvport.  Ai^ril   27.  1816. 

Jacob  Gerrish.  Fsq.  '  ' 

Sui\  1  wish  my  name  to  be  wihdrawn  from  the  reckods  of  the  First 
Religious  Society  in  this  Towne  as  1  can  gow  where  1  can  liear  preach- 
ing that  .sutes  me  .\:  my  famyly  better.  Joseph    (iKAXOER. 


Newbi'rvpoki'.  .April  13.  1817. 

To  the  Clerk  of  the  i-'irst  Keligious  Society. 

Sir.  tliis  will  inform  you  that  1  attend  public  worship  at  St.  {'aul's 
Ciuirch  under  the  I'astoral  charge  of  the  ReV'  James  Morss.  and  wish 
not  to  l)c  taxed  at  N'our  nu'ctinir.  ,■  >  ■ 


THIRD    PARISH   IN  NEWBURY 


447 


Rev.  John  Andrews  remained  in  charge  of  the  parish 
until  May  5,  1830,  when,  on  account  of  ill-health  and  the 
i,  infirmities  of  age,  he  resigned  his  pas- 

toral cares,  but  did  not  sever  his  con- 
nection with  the  society.  He  continued 
to  reside  in  Newburyport  dining  the 
rest  of  his  life,  and  died  there  August 
17,  1845.  He  was  buried  in  Oak  Hill 
Cemetery. 

Rev.  Thomas  B.  Fox,  of  Boston,  was 
ordained  pastor  of  the  society  Aug.  3, 
1 83 1,  Rev.  Charles  Lowell,  a  descend- 
ant of  Rev.  John  Lowell,  the  first  pastor, 
preaching  the  ordination  sermon.  He 
remained  in  active  service  until  April  i , 
1 846,  when  he  resigned,  and  removed 
to  Boston.  During  his  pastorate  "  the 
Proprietors  purchased  the  lot  of  land 
with  the  buildings  thereon  lately  owned 
by  Robert  Laird,  contiguous  to  and  on 
the  north  side  of  the  Meeting  House." 

Since  that  date  the  following  clergy- 
men have  been  settled  as  ministers  in 
the  Third  Church  of  Newbury,  now  or- 
ganized and  incorporated  as  "  The  First 
Religious     Society    of     Newburyport," 


SPIRE   OF   MEETING-HOUSE    namclv  ' 
BUILT   IN    1801.  ''  ^ 


Rev.  Thomas  W.  Hia;sinson  from  Sept.  15.  1S47  to  Sept.  16.  1849. 


Rev.  Charles  J.  laowen 
Rev.  Artemus  B.  Muzzey 
Rev.  Joseph  May 
Rev.  George  L.  Stowell 
Rev.  Daniel  W.  Morehouse 
Rev.  Samuel  C.  Beane 


Nov.   2Q.    1850 

Sept.     3,  1857 

July     21.  1868 

April  12,  1877 

April    8,  1 88 1 

April  14,  1 888. 


June  10,  1853. 

\ov.  I,  1864. 

Dec.  15.  1875. 

Sept.  8.  1879. 

Dec.  5,  1887. 


^ 


LOWELL   HOUSE. 


Rev.  John  Lowell  was  regularly  ordained  and  settled  as 
minister  of  the  Third  Parish  in  Newbury  Jan.  19,  1726, 
although  he  practically  assumed  its  duties  several  months 
earlier.  Judge  Samuel  Sewall,  in  a  letter,  dated  Boston,  Jan. 
15,  1725-6,  to  his  cousin  Henry  Sewall,  at  Newbury,  writes 
with  reference  to  this  event  :  — 

'Tis  a  great  thing  to  be  a  Foundation  Stone  in  such  a  .Spiritual 
Building  as  is  now  to  be  erected  at  Newbury.  Am  glad  your  proceed- 
ings are  so  far  prospered  as  that  you  have  a  prospect  of  having  your 
Pastor  (Mr.  John  Lowell)  ordained  next  Wednesday.  My  love  to  you. 
your  wife  and  children,  and  to  cousin  Abraham  Toppan  and  his  family. 
Pray  for  me  that  God  would  not  forsake  me  now  that  I  am  old  and 
Gray-headed.  ^^^^  Loving  Unkle 

Sajiuel  Sewall. 

Rev.  Mr.  Lowell  married,  Dec.  23,  1725,  Sarah  Champney, 
daughter  of  Noah  and  Sarah  (Tunnell)  Champney,  and  prob- 
ably commenced  housekeeping  in  a  house  built  about  the 
year  1710  by  Edmund  Greenleaf  on  Greenleaf's  lane,  now 
State  Street. 

From  a  deed  recorded  in  book  21,  leaf  192,  of  the  Essex 
Registry  of  Deeds,  it  appears  that  Stephen  Greenleaf  sold, 
for  ^75,  March  2,  1709,  two  acres  of  land  to  Edmund 
Greenleaf,  no  house  being  mentioned.  June  10,  1723,  Ed- 
mund Greenleaf  conveyed  to  John  Cheyney  house,  barn, 
land,  etc.,  valued  at  ^1,400  (book  41,  leaf  86). 

Sept.  14,  1724,  John  Cheyney  conveyed  the  land,  with 
the    buildings    thereon,    to    Thomas    Brown,    Jr.     (book    47, 

leaf  31). 

May  23,    1726,   Thomas  Brown,  Jr.,  of  Newbury,  yeoman 


45°  OULD   NEWBURY 

and  butcher,  for  and  in  consideration  of  ^320,  conveyed  to 
John  Lowell,  clerk,  of  Newbury,  house,  barn,  and  two  acres 
of  land  in  Newbury,  described  and  bounded  as  follows  :  east- 
erly by  Greenleaf's  lane,  southerly  b}'  land  of  John  Coffin, 
westerly  by  land  of  Bcnaiah  Tittcomb  and  land  of  Parker 
Greenleaf,  deceased,  and  northerly  by  land  of  Ambrose  Berry 
(book  48,  leaf  207). 

Rev.  John  Lowell  was  born  in  Boston  March  14,  1704, 
He  was  a  son  of  Kbenezer  Lowell,  who  was  a  lineal  descend- 
ant of  Percival  Lowle  (as  the  name  was  originally  written), 
who  came  with  his  wife  Llizabeth  and  three  children,  John, 
Richard,  and  Joan,  to  Newbury  in  1639.  He  was  seven- 
teen years  old  when  he  graduated  at  Harvard  College  in 
1 72 1,  and  less  than  twenty-two  when  he  was  ordained 
minister  of  the  Third  Parish.  By  his  first  wife  he  had  two 
sons,  one  of  whom  died  in  1736,  when  only  eight  months  old. 
The  other  was  the  distinguished  judge,  John  Lowell,  born 
June  17,  1743.  His  wife,  Sarah  (Champney)  Lowell,  died 
June  28,  1756,  aged  fifty-two.  For  his  second  wife,  he  mar- 
ried, in  1758,  I^lizabeth,  widow  of  Rev.  Joseph  Whipple,  pas- 
tor of  the  church  at  Hampton  Falls,  N.  H.  He  had  no  chil- 
dren by  this  marriage.  Mr.  Lowell  was  a  man  of  scholarly 
tastes  and  liberal  theological  views.  He  was  inclined  to  con- 
sider life  and  character  as  of  more  importance  than  creeds, 
and  his  writings  indicate  great  magnanimity  of  thought  and 
sentiment.  He  owned  and  occupied  the  house  (mi  Green- 
leaf's  lane  until  his  death,  which  occurred  May  15,  "^"(^J. 
He  was  buried  in  the  Old  Hill  biu'ying  ground  ;  and  the 
people  to  whom  he  had  ministered  for  forty-two  years  erected 
a  monument  that  still  "  testifies  to  the  world  their  grateful 
remembrance  of  his  faithful  services."  His  son,  John  Lowell, 
counsellor  at  law,  married  Sarah  Higginson  Jan.  3.  1767. 
After  his  father's  decease  he  occupied  the  house  until  March 
9,  1771,  when  he  sold,  for  X920,  "the  house  in  which  1 
now  li\e  "  to  l'ati"ick  irac)',  merchant,  ol  Xewlnir\  port.  I>\' 
the  same  con\'eyance  l'".lizal)eth  Lowell,  widow,  and  .Sarah 
Lowell,  his  wife,  released  their  I'ights  of  dower  (l^ssex 
Registry   of    Deeds,   book    128,   leaf   257). 


LOWELL   HOUSE  451 

Through  the  influence  of  Patrick  Tracy,  and  other  land 
owners  in  that  vicinity,  Greenleaf's  lane  was  widened  and 
called  Fish  Street.  The  Lowell  homestead  was  removed  to 
Temple  Street,  and  the  brick  building  now  used  for  a  public 
library  was  erected  on  the  site  thus  made  vacant. 

A  ct)mmunication  published  in  the  A'cwbiiijport  Herald 
fifty  years  ago  gives  the  following  interesting  description  of 
an  old  painting  that  formerly  occupied  an  honored  position 
over  the  fireplace  in  the  old  Lowell  mansion  :  — 

The  first  house  (now  the  second)  on  the  ri^^ht  hand  side  of  Temple 
Street  as  you  enter  it  from  State  Street  was  formerly  the  residence  of 
Rev.  John  Lowell,  the  first  pastor  of  the  Third  Church  in  Newbury, 
now  the  First  Church  in  Newburyport.  This  house  originally  stood 
in  State  Street,  where  the  Tracy  house  now  stands.  It  must  be  more 
than  a  century  old.  In  a  back  room,  supposed  to  have  been  the  study 
of  Mr.  Lowell,  on  a  large  panel  over  the  fireplace,  is  a  curious  old 
painting,  more  remarkable  certainly  as  a  curiosity  than  as  a  work  of 
art.  About  two-thirds  of  the  panel  is  taken  up  with  what  seems  to  be 
a  representation  of  some  volcanic  mountains.  The  other  third  contains 
a  picture  of  a  '-Ministers'  Meeting.""  Seven  divines,  most  of  them  with 
countenances  indicative  of  a  good  deal  of  the  odiiiiu  theologicitiii.  with 
huge  white  wigs,  gowns,  and  bands,  are  sitting  on  high-back  chairs, 
around  a  table,  in  solemn  conclave.  On  the  table  are  a  Bible,  a  candle, 
a  bowl  of  tobacco,  and  a  lot  of  pipes.  Thev  seem  to  be  listening  to 
or  criticising  a  manuscript,  probably  some  heretical  utterance  of  the 
new  views  of  their  day.  These  worthies  are  in  a  sort  of  alcove,  over 
the  top  of  which  runs  this  motto, — ••///  necessariis,  iiiiitas ;  in  iion- 
necessariis,  libertas ;  in  utrisque,  c/Kuitas," — which  mav  be  translated 
thus:  In  essentials,  unity :  in  non-essentials,  libertv:  in  both,  charitv. 
Who  painted  this  picture,  and  whether  the  faces  are  likenesses  or  not, 
is  more  than  we  can  tell.  The  work  is  rude  enough.  The  artist  seems 
to  have  had  a  sovereign  contempt  for  the  laws  of  perspective.  The 
Bible  stands  inclined  a  little,  without  any  support :  and  the  most  natural 
things  about  the  whole  affair  are  the  pipes  and  the  wigs.  The  painting 
must  be  very  old.  as  Mr.  Lowell  was  ordained  in  1  726  and  died  in  i  767. 
We  hope  this  ancient  relic  will  be  carefully  preserved.  It  furnishes 
a  curious  contrast  to  the  present  times.  Such  formidable  ministers" 
meetings  have  passed  away,  and  white  wigs  have  lost  their  power. 
••  Tenipora  nnitaiitur,  cf  nos  inutanius  in  iilis.'' 

Some  years  after  the  pidDlication  of  this  commimication, 
Rev.  Thomas  W'entworth  Higginson,  then  a  resident  of  New- 


452  OULD    NE]VBCKY 

bun'port,  l)()UL;iit,  for  Janics  Russell  Lowell,  this  curious  old 
panel,  and,  with  the  consent  of  Mr.  Cieorge  Fitz,  who  owned 
the  house  at  that  time,  had  it  carefully  removed,  and  sent  to 
Cambridge,  Mass. 

Idle  house  is  still  standing  on  Temi:)]e  Street.  A  two-story 
L  has  been  added  to  the  southeast  corner,  but  otherwise  no 
material  changes  or  alterations  have  been  made  in  its  outward 
appearance  since  it  was  removed  to  its  present  site.  This 
addition  cannot  be  seen  as  one  approaches  the  house  from 
State  Street,  and  is  not  visible  from  the  point  of  view  chosen 
for  the  photo-engraving  on  page  448. 


OLD  HILL   BURYING   GROUND. 


The  Third  Parish  in  Newbury  was  organized  in  1725. 
Rev.  John  Lowell  was  settled  as  minister  Jan.  19,  1726.  In 
order  to  provide  suitable  accommodation  for  the  instruction 
of  children  and  the  burial  of  the  dead  within  the  limits  of  the 
parish,  a  committee,  consisting  of  William  Johnson  and  Will- 
iam Titcomb,  was  chosen  Nov.  26,  1729,  to  select  a  place  for 
a  school-house  and  also  for  a  burying  place.  The  parish 
voted,  March  17,  1729-30,  to  set  the  new  school-house  by 
Frog  Pond,  between  Pish  Street  (now  State  Street)  and 
Queen  Street  (now  Market  Street)  ;  and  the  assessors  were 
authorized  to  enclose  with  a  board  fence,  for  a  burial  place, 
the  lot  of  land  in  the  rear  of  Frog  Pond,  then  known  as 
Snelling's  hill. 

Dr.  William  Snelling,*  who  was  a  physician  in  Newbury 
in  1650,  and  who  removed  to  Boston  in  1654,  owned  land  in 
that  neighborhood  which  may  possibly  have  extended  to  the 
crest  of  the  hill.  It  is  impossible,  however,  in  the  absence  of 
definite  information,  to  state  with  accuracy  the  bounds  and 
limits  of  his  estate.      The  town  records  are  vague  and  uncer- 

*  Complaint  was  made  to  the  county  court  held  at  Salem  that  Doctor  Snelling  had  spoken 
disrespectfully  of  his  neighbors.      His  testimony  and  the  testimony  of  his  friends  is  as  follows :  — 

This  is  to  certify  whom  it  may  concern  that  we,  the  subscribers,  being  called  upon  to  testify 
against  (Doctor)  William  Suelling  for  words  by  him  uttered,  afifirm  that  being  in  way  of  merrv' 
discourse,  a  health  being  drunk  to  all  friends,  he  answered, 

I'll  pledge  my  friends. 
And  for  my  foes 
A  plague  for  their  heels 
And  a  poxe  for  their  toes. 

Since  when  he  hath  affirmed  that  he  only  intended  the  pro\erb  used  in  the  west  country,  nor 
do  we  believe  he  intended  otherwise.  William  Thoma.s. 

Thomas  Milward. 

March  12,  1651-2,  all  which  1  acknowledge,  and  I  am  sorry  1  did  not  express  my  intent,  or 
that  I  was  so  weak  as  to  use  so  foolish  a  proverb.  (Iulielmus  Snelling. 

Notwithstanding  this  humble  apology  Doctor  Snelling  was  •'lined  ten  shillings  and  cost  of 
court." 


OLD   HILL   BURYIXG    GROUND  455 

tain,  and  absolutely  nothing  can  be  gathered  frtMii  the  reg- 
istry of  deeds  at  Salem  relating  to  this  subject.  Whether 
the  land  now  known  as  the  Old  Hill  burying  ground  was 
acquired  by  purchase  or  by  grant  from  the  town  of  Newbury, 
remains,  therefore,  somewhat  in  doubt  ;  but  the  parish  evi- 
dentl}'  made  use  of  it  for  burial  purposes  for  more  than  a 
century. 

On  the  summit  of  the  hill.  Rev.  John  Lowell,  the  first 
minister  of  the  parish,  was  buried  in  1768;  and  on  the 
southerly  slope,  not  far  from  the  Hill  Street  entrance,  is  the 
grave  of  his  successor  in  the  ministry,  Rev.  Thomas  Gary, 
who  died  Nov.  24,  1808.  The  inscriptions  on  the  tablets 
that  have  been  erected  to  their  memory  will  be  found  in  full 
on  page  379  of  Coffin's  History  of  Newbury. 

Rev.  Christopher  B.  Marsh,  pastor  of  the  North  Church, 
Rev.  John  Murray,  pastor  of  the  Old  South  Church,  and 
Rev.  Charles  W.  Milton,  pastor  of  the  Prospect  Street 
Church,  are  buried  only  a  few  rods  distant  ;  and  their  epitaphs 
also  have  been  transcribed,  and  will  be  found  in  the  same 
volume,  page  385. 

Other  citizens  of  Newbury  and  Newburyport,  prominent  in 
social,  political,  and  professional  life,  rest  beneath  the  sod 
of  this  old  burying  ground.  Many  of  the  tombstones  and 
marble  slabs  that  mark  their  graves  show  signs  of  age,  and 
need  to  be  carefully  repaired  and  relettered.  A  few  of  the 
interesting  and  noteworthy  names  and  dates  to  be  found  on 
these  moss-covered  stones  are  as  follows  :  — 

Richard  Kent  died  May  8,  1740,  aged  sixty-eight.  "Colo- 
nel of  the  Second  Regiment  in  the  County  of  Essex." 

Sarah  Lowell,  wife  of  Hon.  John  Lowell,  and  daughter  of 
Stephen  Higginson,  of  Salem,  Mass.,  died  May  5,  1772. 

Daniel  Farnham,  an  eminent  barrister  and  prominent 
loyalist,   died   May    18,    1776,   aged   fifty-six. 

Nathaniel  Tracy,  a  distinguished  merchant  during  the 
Revolutionary  War,   died   Sept.   21,   1796,   aged  forty-fi\-e. 

Hon.  Benjamin  Greenleaf,  judge  of  probate  for  Essex 
County  and  afterward  chief  justice  of  the  court  of  common 
pleas,  died  Jan.  13,  1799,  aged  sixty-seven. 


456 


OULD    NEWBURY 


Hon.  Thcophilus  l^radbury,  one  of  the  justices  of  the 
supreme  judicial  court  of  Massachusetts,  died  Sept.  6,  1803, 
aged  sixty-four. 

Timothy  Dexter,  "The  Lord  of  the  East,  Lord  of  the 
West,  and  the  greatest  philosopher  in  the  known  world," 
died  Oct.  26,  1S06. 


GRAVESTONES    OF    TIMOTHY    DEXTER    AND    WIFE. 


Samuel  Lord  Dexter,  his  son,  died  jul\'  20,  i  S07. 

I'^lizaheth  Dexter,  his  wife,  died  jul\'  3,  i  S09. 

Charles  Herbert,  confined  in  the  Old  Mill  Prison  at 
Pl\-mouth,  I'jigland,  during  the  Re\-olutionar}-  War,  died  in 
Newhur}port  Sept.  3,   1808,  aged  fift\--one. 


OLD   HILL    BURYING    GROUXD  457 

Micajah  Sawyer,  M.  D.,  an  accomplished  scholar  and  emi- 
nent physician,  died  Sept.  29,  181  5,  aged  seventy-eight. 

Timothy  Palmer,  inventor  of  the  long  wooden  arch  used 
in  the  construction  of  the  Essex-Merrimack  bridge  in  1792, 
born  in  Boxford,  Mass.,  died  in  Newburyport  Dec.  19,  1821, 
aged  seventy. 

Elder  Robert  Murray,  father  of  Rev.  John  Murray,  died 
Dec.  13,  1790,  aged  ninety-one. 

Theodore  Parsons,  infant  son  of  Theophilus  Parsons  and 
Elizabeth  Parsons,  died  Feb.  18,  1787. 

"Mrs.  Mary  Toppan,  born  in  Boston  Nov.  11,  O.  S.  1727, 
died  in  Newburyport  Jan.  9,  1833,  aged  one  hundred  and 
five  years,  one  month,  and  fifteen  days." 

Nathaniel  Knapp,  who  was  with  the  PZnglish  troops  under 
General  Amherst  at  the  second  capture  of  Louisburg,  died 
July  7,  1 8 16,  aged  eighty-one  years.  The  stone  that  marks 
his  grave  was  also  erected  in  memory  of  his  son,  Jacob 
Knapp,  who  was  at  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill,  and  died  at 
sea  in  1776  in  the  twentieth  year  of  his  age. 

On  the  summit  of  the  hill,  near  the  corner  of  Pond  and 
Greenleaf  Streets,  there  is  a  moss-covered  slab  that  bears 
the  following  curious   epitaph  :  — 

OiniieDi  crcde  diem  tibi  diluxissc  Suprcnniiii. 


Sacred  to  the  Memory  of  Mrs.  Mary  McHard,  the  virtuous  &  ami- 
able consort  of  Capt.  William  McHard  of  NewburyPort,  who  amidst 
the  Laudable  exertions  of  a  very  useful  .S:  desirable  life  in  which  her 
Christian  Profession  was  well  adorne'',  and  a  fair  copy  of  every  social 
virtue  displayed,  was  in  a  state  of  health  suddenly  summoned  to  the 
skies  &  snatched  from  ye  eager  embraces  of  her  friends  (and  the 
throbbing  hearts  of  her  disconsolate  family  confessed  their  fairest 
prospects  of  sublunary  bliss  were  in  one  moment  dashed)  by  swallowing 
a  pea  at  her  own  table  whence  in  a  few  hours  she  sweetly  breathed 
her  soul  away  into  her  Saviours  arms  on  the  8"'  day  of  March  A.D. 
1780.     ^tatis  47. 

This  mournful  stone,  as  a  faithful  Monument  of  virtue  fled  to  realms 
above  &  a  solemn  Monitor  to  all  below  the  stars,  is  erected  by  her 
Husband. 


45 8  OULD   A^EWBURY 

On  the  northwesterly  side  of  the  hill,   near  the  grave  of 
Timothy   Dexter,  is  a  modest  slab  that   bears  the  following 

inscrij^jtion  :  — 

Sacred  to  the  Memory 

of  that  valuable  Instructor. 

Capt.  Thomas  Clouston 

who  in  the  midst  of  great  usefulness 

took  his  departure 

on  Monday  evening  Aug.  lo.  1795 

.-Et  52. 

Happy  the  Seaman  who  his  Compass  knows 
And  steers  to  Heaven  tho'  storm  &  tempest  blows. 
His  Admiral's  signal  quickly  he  saw  fly. 
Which  bid  his  bark  to  sail  l)eyond  the  sky. 
His  sails  he  trimmed  &  took  his  leave  of  all. 
Knowing  it  right  to  obey  his  Admiral's  call. 


Erected  by  his  late  pupils. 
Not  far  distant  is  a  stone  erected 

In  Memory  of  M"' 

Richard     Page    who 

Was  Drowned  July 

13"'  1780.     Aged  30. 

A  Wits  A  Feather 
And  A  Chief  A  Rod. 
An  Honest  Man's  the 
Noblest  Work  of  God. 

One    of     the    most    unique    and     strikingly    characteristic 
epitaphs   in   this   old   bin-ying  ground   reads  as  follows:  — 

Here  lies  Interred  the  Body  of 

Cap'  William  Starkey 

who  Departed  this  Life  October 

the  28"'  I  766  in  tlio 

49"'  year  of  his  age. 


OLD    HILL   BURYING    GROUND  459 

Tho    Neptunes    waves    &    Boreas    Blasts 

Has    toss"d    me    to    and    Fro, 

In    Spite    of    both,    by    (iod's    Decree, 

I'm    Anchored    here    below. 

Where    now    I    do    at    Anchor    Ride 

With    many    of    our    Fleet. 

I    Hope    again    I    shall    set    Sail 

My    Saviour    Christ    to    Meet.* 

In  the  following  inscription,  cut  on  the  gravestone  of 
another  old  ship-master,  who  died  more  than  twenty  years 
later,  the  same  thought   is   expressed  in  somewhat  different 

language  :  — 

Here  lies 

Buried  the  Body  of 

Cap'  Joseph   Newman 

Ohiit  ii"'  of  Jaw  A.D.  17SS  at  Sea. 

^-E  tat  is  45   }'ears. 

By  Borea's  blasts  and  Neptune's  waves, 

I    was   toss'd    to    and    fro. 

Now,  well  escap'd  from  all  their  rage, 

I    anchor    here    below. 

Safely  I  ride  in  triumph  here, 

With  many  of  our  fleet ; 

'Till  signal  calls  to  weigh  again. 

Our    Admiral    Christ    to   meet. 

Among  the  noticeable  gravestones  in  this  old  burying 
ground  is  one  erected  to  the  memory  of  Deacon  Parker 
Noyes.  It  is  of  light  gray  color,  tinged  with  yellow,  and 
bears  an  inscription  cut  with  unusual  care  and  skill.  The 
elaborate  scroll  work,  with  the  figures  representing  angels,  at 
the  top  of  the  stone,  the  shape  and  style  of  the  memorial 
letters,  and  the  ornamental  border  of  oak  leaves  and  acorns 

*  Captain  William  Starkey  was  a  member  of  the  Fellowship  Club,  organized  in  Boston  June 
I,  1742.  At  a  meeting  of  the  club  held  Jan.  7,  1752,  it  was  voted  "that  Capt.  Wm  Starkey  be 
paid  out  of  the  Box  Twenty  one  Pounds  Ten  Shillings  Old  Tenor,  being  all  the  Cash  at  present  in 
the  Box,  and  that  he  shall  be  reliev'd  further  According  to  the  Ability  of  the  Box,  and  that  the 
present  Clerk.  G.  Tidmarsh,  Forward  the  Same  to  him  at  Newbury,  his  Dwelling  place,  iK:  that 
the  said  G.  Tidmarsh  write  him  a  letter  on  ye  same  in  Behalf  of  the  Society." 

Feb.  2,  1754,  the  Fellowship  Club,  under  the  name  of  the  Marine  Society  of  Boston,  was 
granted  an  act  of  incorporation  by  William  Shirley,  go\-emor  of  the  pro\ince  of  Massachusetts 
Bay,  and  in  that  act,  among  the  corporators,  the  name  of  William  Starkey  stands  at  the  head  of 
the  list. 


460 


OULD    NEWnURY 


surr()unclii\i;"  the  inscription  are  reproduced   in  the  half-tone 
print  that  accompanies  this  sketch.      The  alphabetical  lists, 


i  -  C 


"A 


J        !  nip  FT 


GRAVESTONE    IN    OLD    HILL    BURYING    GROUND. 


beneath  the  inscrijnion,  were  cxidently  placed  there  to  show 
the  ability  ol  the  stone  cutler,  and,  perhaps,  incidentally  to 
adxcrlise   liis   work. 


OLD    HILL    B CRYING    GROUND  461 

llie  limits  of  the  old  burying  ground  were  extended  when 
the  most  desirable  places  on  the  hill  had  been  appropriated 
for  the  accommodation  of  the  silent  congregation  gathered 
there.  The  plan  of  Frog  Pond  and  vicinity,  drawn  in  1771 
and  reproduced,  in  connection  with  the  sketch  of  Bartlett 
Mall  on  a  subsequent  page  of  this  book,  gives  the  dimen- 
sions of  the  burying  ground  as  originally  laid  out.  In  1790, 
the  town  of  Newburyport  "  voted  to  enlarge  and  fence  the 
burying  place  as  thought  bes't."  The  lower  portion,  extend- 
ing to  the  junction  of  Pond  and  Auburn  Streets,  was  then 
added,  and  has  since  formed  a  part  of  the  sacred  enclosure. 

In  the  valley  on  the  northwesterly  side  of  the  hill,  sloping 
gently  down  from  Greenleaf  Street  to  the  lower  level  below, 
is  a  long  row  of  gravestones,  standing  side  by  side,  erected 
by  friends  and  relatives  to  the  memoiy  of  those  refugees  and 
exiles  from  persecution  and  oppression  whose  wanderings 
and  earthly  troubles  ended  here.  The  inscriptions  on  these 
stones  are  simple  and  suggestive.  They  speak  of  foreign 
lands  and  noble  birth  and  parentage.  Whittier,  in  his  poem 
"The  Countess,"  alludes  to  one  who  came  with  this  band 
of  exiles  to  this  quiet  neighborhood,  and  afterward  lived  for  a 
while  at  Rocks  Village,  East  Haverhill,  and  married,  March 
21,  1805,  Mary  Ingalls,  daughter  of  Henry  and  Abigail  In- 
galls  of  that  place.  When  peace  was  restored  on  the  islands 
of  Guadaloupe  and  St.  Domingo,  many  of  these  strangers  re- 
turned to  their  homes  ;  but  some  of  their  number  are  quietly 
resting  in  the  Old  Hill  burying  ground.  From  the  low 
stones  that  mark  their  graves  the  following  inscriptions  are 
taken  :  — 

Sacred  to  tlie  nioiiory  of 
M  r  P  o  }■  e  n  S  T  :   S  A  u  \'  E  u  R 

li'ho  for  a  long  time  7i'crs 

An  Inhabitant  &^  a  respectable 

Planter  in  the  Island 

of  Guadaloupe, 

died  Oct :  if'  ijq2. 

Aged  52  Ve^rs. 


462  OULD   XEWBURY 

Mr.   Mederic   Dumas. 

Xatif  de  Bordeaux 

Jiabitaiit  dii  ford  Daitpliin 

Isle  S'  Dominque 

di'ccdf  a  Newburyport 

Ic  9"'  Mai  1 792, 

Age  de  49  A  iis. 

'•The  grave  beneath  the  Thorn  Tree,"  written  by  Han- 
nah F.  Gould  and  published  fifty  years  ago  in  a  volume  en- 
titled "  Gathered  Leaves,"  contains  an  interesting  description 
of  "  Marie  Felicite  Nadau,"  who  sleeps  peacefully  by  the  side 
of  her  kinsmen  and  friends.  The  inscription  on  her  grave- 
stone reads  as  follows  :  — 

Ci-git 

MARIE    f^ELICITE 

NADAU  nee  a  la  Basseterre  (kiadaloupe 

decede  le  19*  Fevrier  1S12, 

A  gee  de  25  ans  et  6  111  ois 

Epoitse  de  M''  Pierre  Alerlande 

Habitant  an  guar  tier  de  Sf  Rose 

de  la  dite  lie. 

The  story  of  her  life  is  too  long  to  be  inserted  here.  Her 
husband  and  brother,  sad  and  disconsolate,  soon  after  her 
burial  took  their  departure  for  the  island  of  Guadaloupe  in  a 
vessel  sailing  under  a  neutral  flag  ;  but  the  monumental  slab 
erected  to  her  memory  still  stands,  a  silent  testimonial  of 
affection,  and  still  attracts  the  wandering  footsteps  of  the 
stranger  to  her  grave. 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  old  burying  ground,  not  far 
from  the  junction  of  Pond  and  Auburn  Streets,  seven  of  the 
crew  of  the  brig  "  Pocahontas "  are  buried.  The  vessel, 
bound  from  Cadiz  to  Newburyport,  James  G.  Cook,  master, 
was  wrecked  on  Plum  Island  during  a  severe  storm,  and  all 
on  board  perished.  Some  of  the  bodies  were  recovered  a  few 
days  later.  Wrapped  in  the  American  flag,  the}-  were  borne 
into  the  broad  aisle  of  the  Old  South  Church,  where  funeral 
services  were  held.  A  long  procession,  numbering  several 
hundred    persons,   followed    the   unknown    dead    to   their  last 


OLD    HILL    BURYIXG    GROUXD  463 

resting  place.  A  marble  tablet,  erected  to  their  memory  by 
the  members  of  the  Newburyport  Bethel  Society,  bears  the 
following  inscription  :  — 

Here  lie  the  remains  of 

Seven 

of  the  unfortunate 

Crew 

of  the  Brig  Pocahontas 

which 

was  wrecked  on 

Plumb  Island 

Dec.  23,  1839. 


In  foreign  lands  their  humble  grave  adorned 

Bv  strangers  honored  and  bv  strangers  mourned.' 


COLONEL  MOSES  TITCOMB. 


William  Titcomb,  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Newbury,  is 
said  to  have  come  to  New  England  with  his  wife,  Joan  Bart- 
lett,  daughter  of  Richard  Bartlett,  Sr.,  in  the  ship  "Her- 
cules." He  was  made  a  freeman  in  1642,  and  one  of  the 
selectmen  of  the  town  in  1646.  He  was  also  representative 
to  the  General  Court  in  1655. 

According  to  the  provisions  of  the  will  of  Richard  Bartlett, 
printed  on  page  231  of  this  book,  he  bequeathed  "to  his 
daughter  Johan,  wife  of  William  Titcomb,  one  pair  of  new 
shoes  for  herselfe,  and  her  four  daughters  each  one  a  pair  of 
shoes." 

Joan  (l^artlett)  Titcomb  died  June  28,  1653  ;  and  Will- 
iam Titcomb  married  Elizabeth  Stevens,  widow  of  William 
Stevens,  March  3,  1654.  Mrs.  Stevens'  maiden  name  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  Bitsfield.  The  will  of  Elizabeth  Bitsfield, 
dated  Sept.  23,  1669,  gives  to  the  children  of  William  Tit- 
comb/^5,  to  be  equally  divided  among  them,  and  "to  my 
daughter  I'^lizabeth  Titcomb  ^10." 

In  1670,  the  town  of  Newbury  "granted  to  William  Tit- 
comb and  Amos  Stickney  the  little  pine  swamp  to  be  their 
propriety,  with  skirts  of  the  comnK)n,  provided  they  make  and 
maintain  a  sufficient  fence  about  the  hole  for  the  safety  of 
the  cattle  from  time  to  time."  Eittle  Pine  swamp  was  on 
the  south  side  of  Oak  Hill  cemetery,  and  at  the  time  of  the 
grant  was  surrounded  by  common,  or  undivided,  land.  The 
hole  that  was  to  be  fenced  with  so  much  care  remains  in 
substantially  the  same  condition  as  when  the  grant  was  made. 
It  is,  in  fact,  a  deep  de]:)ression  in  the  low  swampy  ground  at 
the  foot  of  Oak  Hill,  and  forms  a  natural  basin  for  tjuitc 
a    respectable    jiond    that   was    utilized    fifty    years  ago  as  a 


COLONEL    MOSI-.S    TITCOMB  4^5 

source  of  water  supply  for  one  of  the  manufacturing  corpora- 
tions of  Newburyport. 

William  Titcomb  died  Sept.  24,  1676.  His  oldest  son 
(Penuel)  by  his  first  wife  owned  land  in  the  vicinity  of  Frog 
pond,  near  where  the  Boston  &  Maine  Railroad  freight  sta- 
tion now  stands.  He  is  named  as  executor  and  residuary 
legatee  in  his  father's  will. 

One  of  the  sons  of  William  Titcomb,  by  his  second  mar- 
riage, was  William,  born  Aug.  14,  1659.  He  married  Ann 
Cottle,  daughter  of  William  Cottle,  May  15,  1683.  The, 
Cottles  lived  in  what  is  now  Bromfield  Street,  formerly 
Cottle's  lane,  and  were  large  owners  of  land  in  that  vicinity. 
William  Titcomb,  Jr.,  and  Ann  (Cottle)  Titcomb,  his  wife, 
had  eleven  children,  among  them  a  son  Moses,  who  died 
young;  and  July  8,  1707,  another  son  Moses,  who  lived  to 
be  an  officer  in  the  colonial  army  under  Sir  William  Pep- 
perell  at  the  siege  of  Louisburg,  and  afterward  a  colonel 
under  General  Johnson  at  the  battle  of   Lake  George. 

Nov.  23,  1728,  Moses  Titcomb  notified  the  town  clerk  of 
Newbury  of  his  intended  marriage  to  Merriam  Currier,  of 
Amesbury.  The  marriage  ceremony  was  performed  Dec. 
19,  1728,  by  Rev.  Edmond  Marsh,  of  Amesbury.  Merriam 
Currier,  the  daughter  of  Richard  and  Dorothy  Currier,  was 
born  April  10,  171 1.  The  children  of  Moses  and  Merriam 
(Currier)  Titcomb  were  as  follows  :  — 

Anne,  born  Oct.  5,  1729;   married  Joseph  Wilcomb. 

Hannah,  born  in  August.  1731  ;    married   Ebenezer  Greenleaf  Dec.  21, 

1760. 
Merriam,  born  Jan.  4,  1732-3  ;  married  Nicholas  Tracy. 
Moses,  born  Feb.  20,  1734-5!  married  Phebe  (Marsh?). 
Lois,  born  Nov.  2,  1736;  died  in  1743. 

Mary,  born  March  13,  1742;   married  Robert  Rogers  Oct.  15,  1761. 
Lois!   born   Sept.    18.    1750;    married    Andrew    Frothingham  April   10. 

1772. 
Abigail  born  in  November,  1752;   baptized  Nov.  19.  1752- 
Nicholas,  born  July  23,  1754;   baptized  July  28,  1754. 

During  the  French  and  English  War,  Moses  Titcomb, 
imbued   with  the  military  spirit  of  the  times,  enlisted  in  the 


COL.    MOSES    TITCOMB. 


COLONEL   MOSES    TITCOMB  467 

service,  and,  holding  the  rank  of  major,  was  present  at  the 
capture  of  Louisburg  June  16,  1745.  From  memoranda 
transcribed  at  the  war  ofifice  in  London,  England,  and  pub- 
lished in  the  register  of  the  Society  of  Colonial  Wars, 
Boston,  Mass.,  1895,  it  appears  that  Feb.  7,  1744-5,  Moses 
Titcomb  was  commissioned,  by  the  crown,  captain  of  the 
Third  company  and  major  of  the  Fifth  ^lassachusetts  regi- 
ment. 

The  second  volume  of  "A  Half-Century  of  Conflict,"  by 
Francis  Parkman,  has  a  map  showing  the  position  of  Colonel 
Titcomb's  battery  at  the  siege  of  Louisburg  ;  and  on  page 
1 24  the  author  says  :  — 

The  West  Gate,  the  principal  gate  of  Louisbourg,  opened  upon  the 
tract  of  high,  firm  ground  that  lav  on  the  left  of  the  besiegers,  between 
the  marsh  and  the  harbor,  an  arm  of  which  here  extended  westward 
beyond  the  town,  into  what  was  called  the  Barachois,  a  salt  pond 
formed  by  a  projecting  spit  of  sand.  On  the  side  of  the  Barachois, 
farthest  from  the  town,  was  a  hillock  on  which  stood  the  house  of  an 
habitant  named  Martissan.  Here,  on  the  20th  of  May,  a  fifth  battery 
was  planted,  consisting  of  two  of  the  French  forty-two  pounders  taken 
in  the  Grand  Battery,  to  which  three  others  were  afterwards  added. 
Each  of  these  heavy  pieces  was  dragged  to  its  destination  by  a  team 
of  three  hundred  men  over  rough  and  rocky  ground  swept  by  the 
French  artillery.  This  fifth  battery,  called  the  Northwest,  or  Titcomb's, 
proved  most  destructive  to  the  fortress. 

Thomas  Hutchinson,  who  was  governor  of  Massachusetts 
from  1771  until  the  arrival  of  General  Gage  in  May,  1774, 
on  page  374  of  the  second  volume  of  his  History  of  the 
Province  of  Massachusetts,  says,  with  reference  to  the  siege 
and  capture  of  Louisburg  :  — 

A  constant  fire  was  kept  from  the  grand  battery  upon  the  town  with 
the  forty-two  pounders.  This  greatly  damaged  the  houses,  but  caused 
so  great  an  expense  of  powder  that  it  was  thought  advisable  to  stop 
and  reserve  it  for  the  fascine  batteries.  Five  of  these  were  erected,  the 
last  on  the  20th  of  May,  called  Titcomb's  battery,  with  five  forty-two 
pounders  which  did  as  great  execution  as  any. 

The  following  letters,  written  by  Major  Moses  Titcomb 
while  engaged  in  the  service  of  the  king,   under  Sir  William 


468  OULD   XEIVBCKY 

Pepperell,  for  the  reduction  of  the  fortifications  at  Louis- 
bvirg,  have  been  carefully  preserved,  and  are  now  in  the 
possession  of  Mr.  Alfred  \\\  Lord,  of  Newburyport,  who 
is  a  descendant  of  Joseph  Titcomb  to  whom  they  were 
addressed  :  — 

Caxso,  Aprel  23''.  i  745. 

Loi^eing  Brother. —  Haveing  this  opportunity,  I  Redaly  Imbrace  it 
to  Let  vou  kno  that  threw  The  Goodness  of  god  to  me  &  my  Company 
we  arived  In  this  port  Aprel  5"^  &  found  our  Comador  &  a  Numbor 
of  our  Transports  with  him.  But  Not  all;  But  thay  are  all  arived 
Sence.  We  Injoy  a  good  State  of  helth  threw  out  the  Entire  Fleet  & 
Army.  Mv  Company  are  all  in  good  helth  &  hope  theas  Lines  will 
find  you  and  your  family  by  the  Same.  We  have  had  the  good  fortin 
of  haveing  takeing  two  Briganteans  &  one  sloop  from  ye  French  laden 
with  Rhum,  Molases,  &  other  goods  which  ye  Admarel  have  taken  ye 
greates  part  for  ye  use  of  ye  army,  &  Fited  out  one  of  ye  Briggs  for  a 
privit  teare,  (viz.)  that  which  Cap'  Dalton  &  I  Sold  to  ye  French.  Heare 
is  arived  this  Day  to  our  greate  Joy  Comadore  woren  with  fore  Men  of 
war  with  him.  When  Joynd  with  our  Ships,  will  Make  Such  an  apearance 
at  Louis  Berg  y'  It  will  Make  them  Soon  Strik  to  us.  We  are  to  Sail  at 
two  of  ve  Clock  to  morrow  morning,  and  Pray  God  to  Send  us  a  good 
pasage  theire  &  Cover  My  hed  in  ye  Day  of  Batel,  and  give  me  Suck 
Ses  over  my  Enemys,  which  is,  I  trust,  your  prayer  for  me.  Remember 
my  Cind  Love  to  my  wife  &  children  &  all  other  Frends.  I  Remain 
your  Loveing  Brother.  ^lo^^.-,  Titcomb. 

Being  in  a  greate  hurey  I 
could  write  No  more  at  presant. 

To  Capt  Joseph  Titcoml)  In  Newbury. 


LouiSBURG.  August  5"'.  1745. 

Lin>eing  Brother, —  I  now  wright  you  a  few  Lines  to  Inform  you 
That  threw  the  aboundant  goodness  of  God  I  injoy  a  good  State  of 
helth.  which  lilessing  I  have  been  favord  with  Ever  Sencs  I  Left  you. 
I  ReC'  a  Letter  from  vou  Sum  time  ago,  &  am  Rejoys''  to  here  that  you 
&  your  family  ware  in  good  helth.  But  am  verey  Sorrey  to  here  of  your 
two  Sons  in  Laws  Being  Taken  By  ye  Enemy.  I  hope  it  will  Not  Be 
Long  Befor  thay  will  Be  Returnd  from  tlieire  Captivity  again.  It  is 
a  Time  of  ( General  Ilcltli  among  us  ^v:  few  Dies,  Considring  ye  Numbor 
of  our  Armv.  The  Solgars  groes  uneasy  on  account  of  theire  Being  here 
So  Long;  But  more  Espaslv  for  fere  tliay  .Shall  Be  fors'd  to  Stay  here 
all  wintor.      But  for  my  ]Kirt  I  have   No    Reason  to  think   But   tliat   my 


COLONEL   MOSES    TITCOMB  469 

Company  will  Be  ReleasVl,  this  fawl  The  Gonaral  was   So  good  as  to 
offer  me  ye  command  of  Canso  to   Supply  the  place  of   Capt.  Cutter, 
who  is  Sent  from  here  to  ansor  to  Sumthing  alleg^i  against  him.      But  I 
Declined  it.     How  Ever  about  14  of  my  men  are  a  going  under  the  Com- 
mand of  Cool  Eveleth   By  theire  one   Corps,  haveing  a  promise  to   Be 
Dismis''  in  a  bout  three  weeks.      But  your  Son   hes  more  witt  then  to 
Be  one  of  that   Number;   for  I    Do  not  think  thay  will  Be  Releas^i  any 
Sooner  then  the  Rest  of  my  men  will  Be,  &  as  to  my  Staying  here  all 
wintor   I    Shall  Not  Comply  with  it  unles  It  Be  on  good  Termes.      But, 
If  I    Should   Conclude  to   Remain  in  the  King's  sarvis,  I  shall   Coome 
home  this  fawl.      Our  men  of  war  have  had  a  Create  Suckses  Befoure  & 
Sents  we   Take  this   Sitty,   But  more   Espasly  ye  Latar ;   for  thay  have 
Taken  two  East  India  Ships  verey  Richly  Laden  &  one  Regastor  ship 
Laden  Cheafly  with   Muney.  Said   to    Be    woth    foure  or  five  hundred 
Thousand  pounds  Starlin,  So  that  muney  &  goods  are  very  plenty  here, 
&  those  that  have  any  thing  to  By  with  will  make  it  Do  well.     We  have 
Lately  herd  from  New  England  that  ye  Indians  are   Broke  out  &   Dun 
Sum  Considerabel  Damige,  which  I  am  verey  Sorrey  to  here.     We  have 
Lately  herd   from    Canaday  by   a    prise    vesel  y'   Cap:    Fletcher  Tuke 
Laden  with  provisions  that  a  greate  Number  of  French   Beside   Indians 
ware  Raisd  &  going  on  an  Expedition  against   Sum  of  our   Settelments 
In   New  England,  &,  If  So,  I  am  afrade  the   Conseciuence  will  Be  Bad. 
However,  God  have  Been  on   our   Side  in  the  greate  victory  we   have 
o-aind  over  our  Enemys  in   this  place,  &  hope  he  will   Continu   to   Be 
o-racous   &  prosper   us  in   all   our   Lawfull   undertakeings.      Remembor 
my  Love  to   Sistor  &  to  all  your  children,  &   Tel  them  your  Son  is  in 
good  helth.      Remembor   my   Love  to   my  wife   &    Children   &   all  my 
Brothers  &   Sistors.      I    Remain  your   Loveing   Brother  Til   Deth. 

Moses  Titcomb. 

P:  s. Give  my  Sarvis  To   Mr  Morgridg  &  wife,   &  tel  them   I   am 

verey  Sorrey  to  hear  of   the   Deth   of  theire  Son   Simeon,  »S:  pray  that 
god  would  pleas  To  Santify  his  Deth  to  them  &  theire  Family. 

For  Cap'  Joseph  Titcomb 

In  Newbury  New  England. 

Two  brothers  of  Moses  Titcomb,  Joseph  and  Benjamin 
(twins),  were  born  March  30,  1698.  Joseph,  to  whom  the 
above  letters  were  addressed,  married  Ann  Smith  Oct.  4, 
1 72 1.  He  died  July  25,  1785.  His  eldest  son,  Henry,  born 
in  1723,  married  Mary  Titcomb,  daughter  of  Enoch  and 
Elizabeth  Titcomb,  Feb.  5,  1746-7- 

Enoch,  born   Dec.   6,  1752,  was  the   eldest    son   of    Henry 


47 o  OULD   NEWBURY 

and  I\Iary  Titcomb.  He  married  March  ii,  1778,  Ann 
Jones,  daughter  of  Ephraim  and  Mary  Jones,  of  Portland, 
Me.  He  was  a  brigade  major  under  General  Sullivan  in 
Rhode  Island.  His  commission  was  dated  "Boston,  July  3, 
1778."  He  was  also  a  member  of  the  convention  that 
formed  the  State  constitution,  and  was  afterward  representa- 
tive to  the  General  Court  and  State  senator  for  several  years. 
He  was  treasurer  of  the  town  of  Newbury  port  from  1784  to 
1 8 10,  and  town  clerk  from  1790  to  1796.  He  died  Aug.  13, 
1814. 

His  daughter  Fanny,  born  May  16,  1797,  married  Moses 
Lord,  who  was  postmaster  of  Newburyport  from  181 2  to 
1840.  To  Mr.  Alfred  W.  Lord,  son  of  Moses  and  Fanny 
(Titcomb)  Lord,  these  old  letters,  with  other  papers  relating 
to  Colonel  Moses  Titcomb,  have  been  transmitted. 

After  the  capture  of  Louisburg,  Major  Titcomb  was  ap- 
pointed to  the  command  of  the  troops  stationed  at  Falmouth 
(now  Portland),  Me.  He  accepted  the  position,  and  was  on 
duty  there  from  May  until  October  in  1747.  When  peace 
was  restored  between  France  and  P2ngland,  Major  Titcomb 
returned  to  Newbury,  where  he  remained  until  the  renewal 
of  hostilities  between  the  two  rival  powers  in  1755.  He  then 
re-enlisted  in  the  service,  was  made  colonel  of  a  regiment,  and 
ordered  to  report  at  once  for  duty. 

Rev.  John  Lowell,  pastor  of  the  third  church  in  Newbury, 
preached  a  sermon,  May  22,  1755,  before  Colonel  Titcomb 
and  the  men  under  his  command,  just  previous  to  their  de- 
parture for  the  seat  of  war.  This  sermon  was  subsequently 
published,  with  some  brief  introductory  remarks  commending 
the  courage  and  heroism  of  Colonel  Titcomb.  The  text  was 
taken  from  Deuteronomy  xx  :  4:  "  For  the  Lord  your  God  is 
he  that  goeth  with  you,  to  fight  for  you  against  your  enemies, 
to  save  you." 

The  names  of  the  officers  of  this  regiment,  with  their  terms 
of  service,  were  entered  on  the  pay-roll  now  in  the  Massachu- 
setts Archives  (volume  95,  jiage  96)  ;  but  this  otficiai  register 
does   not  contain  the  names  ot  those  who  serxed  in  tlic  ranks. 


COLONEL    MOSF.S    TITCOMB  471 

Bancroft's  History  of  the  United  States  (volume  g,  page 
210,  edition  1854)  has  a  plan  of  the  battle  ground  at  Crown 
Point,  showing  the  position  of  Colonel  Titcomb's  regiment. 
He  had  command  of  the  extreme  right  wing  of  General  John- 
son's line.  In  the  height  of  the  conflict,  when  the  battle 
was  raging  furiously,  "  he  got  behind  a  large  pine-tree,  about 
one  rod  distant  from  the  end  of  the  breast-work,  where  he 
could  stand  up  and  command  his  men  who  were  lying  flat  on 
the  ground,  and  where  he  could  have  a  better  opportunity  to 
use  his  own  piece.  Here,  he  was  insensibly  flanked  by  a 
party  of  Indians,  who  crept  around  a  large  pine  log  across 
a  swamp  about  eighty  yards  distant,  and  shot  him.  Colonel 
Titcomb  and  Lieutenant  Baron  stood  behind  the  same  tree, 
and  both  fell  at  the  same  fire.  This  was  about  four  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon  of  Monday,  the  eighth  day  of  September, 
1755  "  (Coffin's  History  of  Newbury,  page  222). 

The  news  of  this  sad  event  was  received  in  Newbury  with 
expressions  of  profound  grief.  Memorial  exercises  were 
held  in  the  meeting-house  in  Market  Square ;  and  Rev.  Mr. 
Lowell  delivered  a  sermon  from  the  text,  "  Moses  my  ser- 
vant is  dead,"  to  be  found  in  the  first  chapter  of  Joshua  and 
second  verse.  This  sermon  was  published  in  1760  by  Messrs. 
Edes  and  Gill,  of  Queen  Street,  Boston. 

Colonel  Titcomb  owned,  and  his  family  occupied  at  the 
time  of  his  death,  a  house  in  Newbury  ( now  Newbury- 
port),  on  the  northwesterly  corner  of  Merrimack  Street  and 
a  way  leading  to  High  Street,  now  known  as  Olive  Street. 
Administration  was  granted  on  his  estate  in  1755,  "^^^^  <^^i^'i- 
sion  of  the  property  was  not  made  until  1 767.  At  the 
last-named  date  there  was  set  off  to  his  eldest  son,  Moses 
Titcomb,  "  that  part  of  the  mansion  house  known  by  the 
name  of  the  old  part  with  the  land  under  the  same,  bounded 
easterly  on  the  lot  (next  described)  called  the  new  end  of 
the  house,  and  westerly  on  the  field  set  off  to  lot  (third 
next  described)  at  the  west  end  of  the  barn,  northerly 
on  Bradbury's  land,  and  southerly  on  the  .  .  .  way  which  is 
left  to  be  used  in  common."  To  his  son,  Nicholas  Titcomb, 
was  awarded  "  that  part  of  the  mansion  house  known  by  the 


\X^sN 


COLONEL   MOSES    TLTCO.VB  473 

name  of  the  new  end  with  the  land  under  the  same  and 
adjoining,  bounded  easterly  on  Merrimack  Street,  northerly 
on  Bradbury's  land,  westerly  on  the  old  house  set  off  to  lot 
(described  next  preceding),  and  southerly  on  the  .  .  .  common 
way."  This  old  house  was  standing  until  the  summer  of 
1895,  when  it  was  taken  down,  and  a  new  house  erected  on 
the  spot. 

The  photo-engraving  of  Colonel  Titcomb  that  accompanies 
this  sketch  is  taken  from  a  portrait  now  in  the  possession  of 
Mr.  Robert  Frothingham,  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  who  is  a  son 
of  the  late  Mr.  Henry  Frothingham,  of  Newburyport,  and 
grandson  of  Andrew  Frothingham,  who  married,  April  10, 
1772,  Lois  Titcomb,  daughter  of  Colonel  Moses  lltcomb. 

The  name  of  the  artist  and  the  place  where,  and  the  time 
when,  the  portrait  was  painted  are  unknown.  It  was  the 
property  of  Andrew  Frothingham  during  his  lifetime,  and 
has  remained  in  the  possession  of  his  descendants  ever  since. 
A  copy  of  this  portrait,  in  oil  colors,  hangs  in  the  Public 
Library  building  in   Newburyport. 


THE   DALTON   HOUSE. 


Philemon  Dalton  came  to  New  E^ngland  in  1635,  witli  liis 
wife  Dorothy  and  one  son,  Samuel,  then  about  six  years  of 
age.  He  settled  first  at  Uedham,  Mass.,  but  soon  removed  to 
Hampton,  N.  H.  As  early  as  Dec.  24,  1639,  he  was  granted 
one  hundred  acres  of  land  within  the  limits  of  the  last  named 
town  ;  and  in  April,  1641,  he  was  a  member  of  the  commit- 
tee appointed  to  confer  with  the  authorities  at  Newbury  and 
Salisbury  in  regard  to  the  ferry  across  the  Merrimack  River 
established  soon  after  that  date  by  George  Carr. 

Samuel  Dalton,  son  of  Philemon,  married  Mehetabel, 
daughter  of  Henry  Palmer,  of  Haverhill,  Mass.  He  was  a 
man  of  considerable  ability  and  influence  in  the  town  of 
Hampton,  and  held  many  offices  of  trust  during  his  life. 

His  son  Philemon,  bom  Dec.  15,  1664,  married  Abigail, 
daughter  of  PIdward  Gove,  Sept.  25,  1690,  and  had  ten  chil- 
dren. Their  youngest  son,  Michael  Dalton,  was  born  P'eb. 
22,  1709.  He  came  to  Newbury  when  quite  a  young  man, 
and  entered  upon  a  sea-faring  life.  He  soon  attained  com- 
mand of  a  ship,  and  made  several  successful  voyages.  He 
married  Feb.  5,  1733-4,  Mary  Little,  daughter  of  Tristram 
Little.  A  few  years  later  he  established  himself  in  business 
as  a  merchant,  and  purchased  a  house  on  the  northerly  side 
of  Market  Square  for  the  sum  of  ^1,000.  At  this  date 
Tristram  Little  lived  on  the  southeasterly  side  of  the  square, 
near  the  present  corner  of  Liberty  Street. 

Michael  Dalton  was  an  active  and  influential  member  of 
St.  Paul's  Church,  and  contributed  largely  to  its  support.  He 
was  elected  one  of  the  vestrymen  of  that  church  in  1743, 
and  was  annually  re-elected  to  that  ofifice  until  1770,  with 
the  exception  of  two  years,  1756  and  1757,  when  he  served 
as  warden. 


476 


OULD   XEWBURY 


May  15,  1746.  lie  bought  of  "  (lideon  ]^artlett,  of  Alms- 
bury,  tanner,  with  consent  of  his  wife  Abigail,  for  ^a,6oo, 
old  tenor,"  about  three  acres  of  land  in  Newbury,  bounded 
"  Westerly  on  Greenleaf 's  lane  or  Fish  Street,  southerly  on 
y*"  land  of  Nathan  Hale,  Esq.,  in  })art  and  partly  on  ye  land 
of  John  Xewnian,  easterly  on  s'^  Newman's  land  and  }''  land 
of  M''  Anthony  Sumersby,  northeast  or  northerly  on  land  of 
y''  heirs  of  ye  late  James  Peirson,  deceased,  with  y  house  & 
houslins  thereon  "  (Essex  Deeds,  book  88,  page  109). 

(3n  this  land  Michael   Dalton   erected  a  fine  house,  with  a 


DALTON    HOUSE. 


spacious  barn  and  court-yard  adjoining,  h'lfteen  or  twenty 
years  ago  the  barn  was  removed  to  make  room  for  (harden 
Street  and  for  the  contemplated  improvements  in  that 
vicinity ;  but  the  house  is  still  standing,  and  is  now  the 
jjrojierty   of   Mr.   Timoth)'    Remick,   of   l^oston. 

Michael  Dalton  was  evidently  a  man  of  large  means,  and 
interested  in  agricultural  i:)ursuits.  1  le  bought  a  large  farm  of 
nearly  two  hundred  acres  on  Pipe  Stave  Hill,  in  West  New- 
bury, which  after  his  death  was  occupied  by  his  son  Tristram 
as  a  ct)untry  seat.  In  1765,  he  purchased  some  wharf  prop- 
erty at  the  foot  of  Market  Street,  then  called  (Juccn  Street, 
and   established  a  distillery  there.      lie   was   also   e.\tensi\ely 


THE   DALTOX  I/O  USE 


477 


engaged  in  the  importation  of  foreign  goods  and  the  exi)orta- 
tion  of  domestic  products.  He  died  March  i,  1770,  and  was 
buried  in  St.  Paul's  churchyard.  His  widow  married  Cap- 
tain Patrick  Tracy  March  25,  1773,  and  died  Dec.  10,  1791, 
aged  seventy-eight.  She  also  was  buried  in  the  churchyard 
by  the  side  of  her  first  husband. 

Previous  to  the  organization  of  the  parish  of  St.  Paul's  and 
the  erection  of  a  church  building  on  the  corner  of  Queen 
and  High  Streets,  Captain  Michael  Dalton  and  his  wife,  Mary 
(Little)  Dalton,  were  members  of  the  Third  Church  in  New- 


DALTON    HOUSE    STABLE. 


bury,    now    the    Y'nst    Religious    Society    in    Newburyport. 
From   the  records  of  this  society  it  appears  that 


Mary,*  daughter  of  Captain  Dalton,  was  baptized  Dec.  22,  1734. 
Michael. t  son  of  Captain  Dalton,  was  baptized  Nov.  7,  1736. 
Tristram,  son  of  Captain  Dalton,  was  baptized  June  4,  1738. 

Tristram  was  born  in  Newbury,  now  Newburyport,  May 
28,  1738.  He  graduated  from  Harvard  College,  in  1755,  in 
the  class  with  John  Adams.  He  read  law  in  Salem,  but  on 
the  completion  of  his  studies  returned  to  Newbury,  and  joined 
his   father    in   business.      He  married,    Oct.    24,    1758,   Ruth 

*IMan-  Dalton  \va5  bom  Dec.  2,  1734,  and  died  Nov.  18,  1736. 
t  Michael  Dalton  was  bora  Nov.  i,  1736,  and  died  Oct.  3,  1841. 


TRISTRAM    DALTON. 


THE   D ALTON   HOUSE  479 

Hooper,   daughter   of    Robert    Hooper,    a   rich    merchant    of 
Marblehead. 

On  the  death  of  his  father  he  inherited  a  large  estate, 
amply  sufficient  to  satisfy  his  wants  and  expectations.  In  a 
sketch  of  Tristram  Dalton,  read  by  the  late  Hon.  Eben  F. 
Stone  Feb.  20,  1888,  before  the  members  of  the  Essex 
Institute  at  Salem,  Mass.,  the  personal  appearance  of  the 
man  who  ultimately  represented  Massachusetts  in  the  United 
States  senate  is  described  as  follows  :  — 

There  is  a  portrait  of  him  in  the  possession  of  his  great-grand- 
daughter, taken  when  he  was  eighteen  years  of  age,  just  after  he 
graduated,  which  is  supposed  to  have  been  painted  by  Blackburn.  It 
appears  from  this  that  he  was  tall  and  well-formed,  with  a  fine,  clear 
complexion  and  a  smooth,  open  brow.  He  had  full,  dark  eyes,  rather  a 
long  nose,  and  a  firm,  well-set  mouth  and  chin.  The  general  expression 
of  his  face  is  open  and  intelligent.  His  dress,  after  the  fashion  of  the 
time,  short  clothes  and  knee-breeches ;  coat  with  standing  collar  and 
deep,  broad  lapels  faced  with  silk ;  white  satin  waistcoat,  cut  deep  and 
long;  ruffled  shirt  bosom  and  deep  lace  cuffs;  his  hair  tied  in  a  queue 
and  puffed  on  each  side :  all  this  gives  such  an  appearance  of  age 
and  dignity  to  the  figure  that  it  is  difficult  to  believe  it  is  the  portrait 
of  one  so  young.  In  the  latter  part  of  his  life  his  figure  was  very  strik- 
ing and  imposing.  It  has  been  said  by  one  who  saw  him  about  181 6, 
in  Newburyport,  that  he  was  then  perfectly  erect  and  firm,  with  a  florid 
complexion,  white  hair,  and  a  fine  presence.  He  was  fond  of  music, 
and,  when  young,  played  on  the  flute.  He  was  a  fine  specimen  of  the 
gentleman  of  the  old  school.  Naturally  refined,  fond  of  literature,  easy, 
affable,  and  dignified  in  his  manner,  he  was  well  fitted  to  take  a  leading 
part  in  the  best  of  New  England  society,  as  it  was  constituted  in  the 
colonial  era.  From  the  time  his  father  died  until  he  was  elected  to  the 
Senate  in  1788  he  maintained  at  his  mansion  on  State  Street,  in  New- 
buryport, and  at  his  country  seat  at  Pipe  Stave  Hill,  a  most  generous 
hospitality. 

A  copy  of  the  portrait  referred  to  above,  painted  by 
Thomas  B.  Lawson,  of  Lowell,  Mass.,  now  hangs  in  the 
rooms  of  the  Historical  Society  of  Old  Newbury  ;  and  from 
that  copy  the  half-tone  print  that  accompanies  this  sketch, 
is  taken. 

Tristram  Dalton  was  actively  interested  in  public  affairs 
previous  to  the  Revolution,  and  his  name  frequently  appears 


480  OULD   XF.WBCRY 

in  the  records  of  the  town.  He  served  on  important  com- 
mittees, and  gave  considerable  time  and  attention  to  the 
revision  of  the  pubHc  school  system  of  Newburyport.  In 
1774,  he  was  one  of  the  delegates  to  the  Provincial  congress, 
and  in  1776  he  was  elected  representative  to  the  General 
Court. 

During  the  war  he  was  an  ardent  and  patriotic  supporter 
of  the  continental  government,  and  heartily  in  sympathy  with 
the  men  who  were  struggling  to  secure  American  indepen- 
dence. From  1782  to  1785  inclusive,  he  was  an  active  and 
influential  member  of  the  State  legislature,  and  in  1783  he 
was  chosen  speaker  of  the  house.  In  1784,  though  again 
chosen  to  that  office,  he  declined  to  serve.  In  1786,  1787, 
and  1788  he  was  a  member  of  the  State  senate,  and  also  a 
delegate  from  Newburyport  to  the  constitutional  convention 
of  1788.  He  was  active  and  energetic  in  his  efforts  to 
reconcile  political  differences,  and  zealously  advocated  the 
adoption  of  the   constitution   of   the    United   States. 

After  a  long  and  protracted  contest  the  advocates  of  the 
new  constitution  were  successful,  and  Tristram  Ualton  and 
Caleb  Strong  were  elected  senators  to  the  first  congress 
from  Massachusetts.  The  long  term  fell,  by  lot,  to  Caleb 
Strong.  After  the  expiration  of  two  years  Tristram  Dalton 
was  a  candidate  for  re-election  ;  but,  owing  to  the  strong 
):)arty  feeling  prevailing  at  that  time  and  the  lack  of  una- 
nimity among  his  own  friends  and  supporters,  he  was  de- 
feated, and  soon  after  retired  from  the  public  service. 

The  result  of  this  election  was  evidently  a  serious  dis- 
appointment to  him  ;  but  his  letters,  written  at  this  time,  do 
not  show  any  signs  of  anger  or  ill-nature,  although  malicious 
and  unfounded  reports,  derogator)'  to  his  character,  had  been 
circulated  by  his  enemies  during  the  campaign. 

He  retained  his  residence  in  New  York  until  congress 
removed  to  Philadelphia,  when  he  engaged  a  house  in  that 
city,  and  made  a  home  for  himself  and  family  there.  When 
Washington,  D.  C,  was  selected  as  tlie  permanent  seat  oi 
government,  he  decided  to  sell  his  real  estate  in  Ivsse.x  county. 
Mass.,  and  invest  the  i)r<>ceeds  in  Washington  city  lands. 


THE   D ALTON  HOUSE 


In  1790,  ^^^'  ^*^^^*-^  ^^'  Joseph  Stanwood,  of  Ncwburyport,  his 
great  farm  at  Pipe  Stave  Hill  for  ^3,700,  and  at  the  same 
time  he  conveyed  to  Moses  Brown  his  mansion  house,  stables, 
and  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same  on   State  Street,  and 


HALL    AND    STAIRCASE,    DALTON    HOUSE. 


to  William  Welsted  Prout  and  Samuel  Gyles  Parsons  all  his 
interest  in  the  old  Tristram  Little  place,  on  the  southeasterly 
side    of    Market    Square,   which    he   had    inherited   from  his 

mother. 

His  household  goods  were  carefully  packed  and  shipped  by 
a  sailino-  vessel  bound  to   Georgetown,  D.  C.      The  vessel  was 


482  OULD   NEWBURY 

wrecked  on  the  way  ;  and  he  h)st  a  large  part  of  his  furniture, 
books,  and  pictures.  "  The  anticijxated  rise  in  value  of  real 
estate  at  Washington  did  not  take  place.  His  agent  was 
dishonest.  The  speculation  proved  a  failure ;  and  Dalton, 
with  nearly  all  the  others  engaged  in  the  enterprise,  lost  his 
property,  and  was  reduced  to  such  a  condition  that  he  was 
forced  to  accept  a  situation  in  the  Boston  custom-house  for 
his  support.  He  removed  to  Boston  in  18 15,  and  died  very 
suddenly,  two  years  after,  on  the  30th  of  May,  1817." 

During  his  residence  in  Newburyport  he  was  an  active  and 
devoted  member  of  St.  Paul's  Church,  and  contributed  gen- 
erously to  its  support.  In  1 760  and  i  761,  he  served  as  warden 
of  the  parish,  and  from  1765  to  1788  (when  he  removed  to 
New  York)  he  was  annually  elected  one  of  the  vestrymen. 

His  grave  is  on  the  southeasterly  side  of  the  church,  where 
his  wife,  Ruth  (Hooper)  Dalton,  and  five  of  his  children  are 
buried.  Only  three  of  his  daughters  lived  to  mature  age. 
Mary,  the  eldest  daughter,  married  Hon.  Leonard  White,  of 
Haverhill,  Mass.,  at  one  time  a  member  of  Congress.  Ruth 
married,  July  21,  1789,  Lewis  Deblois,  a  merchant  of  Boston. 
Catherine  was  never  married. 

Hon.  Eben  F.  Stone,  in  the  paper  read  before  the  Essex 
histitute  at  Salem,  Mass.,  from  which  many  important  facts 
and  incidents  have  been  drawn  for  publication  in  this  sketch, 
gives  some  interesting  extracts  from  the  letters  of  Tristram 
Dalton  relating  to  the  men  and  measures  prominent  at  the 
first  session  of  congress  after  the  adoption  of  the  constitu- 
tion, and  closes  with  the  following  careful  and  discriminating 
analysis  of  his  life  and  character  :  — 

Physically,  he  was  well-built,  large,  and  robust,  with  a  fine,  erect 
figure,  an  open,  benevolent,  and  handsome  face,  and  that  natural  air  of 
superiority  which  implies  a  fine  organization.  His  mental  powers, 
tliough  good,  were  not  remarkable.  Sensible,  intelligent,  and  refined, 
there  was  nothing  in  the  force  or  capacity  of  his  mind  to  distinguish 
him  from  tliose  of  tlie  class  who  liad  enjoyed,  like  him.  the  advantages 
of  culture  and  of  the  l)est  society.  His  moral  nature  was  of  the  highest 
order.  Kind,  generous,  temperate,  ujjright.  truliiful.  and  unselfisli  in 
the  social  and   domestic  rehitions.  he  was   a   model    man.  a   dutiful    son. 


THE    D ALTON  HOUSE  483 

a  kind  father,  a  good  citizen,  and  an  ardent  patriot.  A  man  of  emo- 
tions rather  than  of  ideas,  the  warmth  and  depth  and  sincerity  of  his 
feehngs  lifted  him  above  all  personal  considerations,  and  gave  to  him 
that  elevation  and  nobility  of  character  which  appeal  so  strongly  to  our 
regard  and  affection.  Take  him  for  all  in  all,  he  was  a  fine  specimen 
of  an  accomplished  Christian  gentleman  of  the  old  school,  of  the  class 
which  was  the  best  product  of  the  colonial  period,  and  which  perished 
under  the  influence  of  the  democratic  ideas  introduced  by  the  Revolu- 
tion. 


NATHANIEL   KNAPP. 


Surmounting",  and  firmly  secured  to  a  stone  post,  on  the 
corner  of  Middle  and  Independent  Streets  in  Newburyport,  is 
a  large  cast-iron  bomb-shell,  thrown  from  a  mortar  at  the 
second  siege  of  Louisburg,  and  brought  to  Newbury,  Mass., 
by  Nathaniel  Knapp,  who  served  as  a  soldier  as  well  as 
carpenter  and  ship-calker  with  the  land  and  naval  forces 
assembled    for  the  capture  of  the  city  in    1758. 

Nathaniel  Knapp  was  a  grandson  of  Isaac  and  Ann 
(Eaton)  Knapp,  of  Salem.  His  father,  Nathaniel  Knapp, 
Sr.,  was  born  in  Salem  May  4,  171 3.  He  came  to  Newbury 
when  a  young  man,  and  married  Sarah  Hart,  daughter  of 
Charles  and  Rebecca  (Kent)  Hart  in  1734.  He  was,  like 
his  son  and  namesake,  a  calker  by  trade,  and  is  so  styled  in 
the  deeds  of  conveyance  executed  by  him  during  the  next 
ten  or  fifteen  years. 

He  purchased,  Dec.  15,  1736,  of  John  Webster,  Jr.,  a  lot 
of  land,  with  a  dwelling-house  thereon,  on  the  northwesterly 
corner  of  Middle  and  Independent  Streets,  at  that  time  desig- 
nated as  "a  lane  of  two  rods  wide"  and  "as  a  way  of  one 
and  a  half  rods  wide"  respectively  (Essex  Deeds,  book  y^, 
page  224).  Three  years  later  he  bought  two  lots  of  land, 
with  two  dwelling-houses  on  the  same,  on  the  southeasterly 
corner  of  the  same  streets  or  public  ways,  "  in  the  Third 
Parish  in  Newbur)' "  (h>ssex  Deeds,  book  y'S,  page  93,  and 
book  81,  page  45).  To  one  of  these  houses  he  removed  with 
his  famil)'. 

His  children  at  this  time  were  Hannah,  born  in  1735,  died 
in  1736,  and  Nathaniel,  born  March  30,  1736.  Nine  other 
children  were  subsec|ucntly  born  to  Nathaniel  Knapp  and 
Sai'ali,  Ills  wife.      Sarah    Knapp    died    in    1754;  and    he   mar- 


NATHANIEL    KNAPP  485 

ried,    Sept.    18,  1754,  widow    l<:iizabeth  (Gerrish)   Moody,  by 
whom  he  had  one  daughter,  born   Dec.  3,  1757,  died  Oct.  5, 

1758. 

Nathaniel  Knapp,  Jr.,  married,  Jan.  14,  I757.  Mary 
Mirick,  of  Newbury,  and  the  next  year  joined  the  armed 
forces  assembled  at  Halifax  under  General  Amherst  for  the 
capture  of  Louisburg.  His  diary,  recently  published  by  the 
Society  of  Colonial  Wars,  gives  some  very  interesting  facts 
and  incidents  connected  with  the  campaign.  A  few  brief 
extracts,  relating  more  especially  to  his  own  personal  move- 
ments, will  be  of  interest  to  the  readers  of  this  sketch  :  — 

Monday,  March  ye  27,  1758,  Set  out  for  Portsmouth,  Newhampshire, 
from  Newbury  by  water  on  board  Will  Gerrish  Scooner  &  got  in  at 
one  a  clock  afternoon.      Lodged  at  Mr.  hoiets. 

175S,  Monday,  April  3  day. 

Sailed  from  portsmouth  2  th  Clock  in  ye  Snow  Halifax.  Capt  Wells 
Comander.  with  ve  wind  at  N.W.  teusday  4  day  we  met  with  a  .Snow 
from  Lisband  bound  to  Marblehead.  Capt.  John  Lee  Comander.  he  gave 
an  accompt  that  ye  King  of  Prussia  had  a  fight  &  took  50000  Prisoners. 
1758,  Saturday,  April  8"^  made  Lehave.  the  wind  at  N.  N.  W..  about 
8  o  clock  Saw  a  Ship  4  Leagues  to  Leward  at  12  Clock.  She  came  up 
with  us.  &  proved  to  be  the  province  Ship,  Capt.  hollaway  comandar. 
thev  veard  a  boav  a  Stern  to  take  our  Cable  on  board  them  for  to  tow 
us  in  to  hallifax,  &  she  toed  us  Between  7  &  8  nots,  &  yt  is  2  or  3  more 
than  Ever  She  went  before  thick  of  Snow  &  Squally. 

1758,  Tuesdav,  April  11.  we  hove  up  this  Morning.  &  Came  up  to 
Dartmouth  and  Came  to  an  anchor  about  noon,  in  ye  afternoon  we  went 
a  Shore  &  Vieued  the  place  &  houses. 

1758,  Sunday,  May  28,  Sot  sail  at  loth  Clock  &  went  out  with  ye 
whole  fleet,  wind  X.W.      I  was  very  sea  Sick. 

1758,  friday  ye  2  June  fell  in  with  some  o  the  fleet,  thick  &  foggy,  we 
Espied  under  ye  land  a  brig.  &  ye  bumb  Catch  Gave  Chase  &  Drove 
her  ashore.      She  was  a  french  brig. 

1758.  Wednesday,  June  7.  Clear  weather.  Spoke  with  a  frigat  & 
She  said  ye  fleet  had  got  in  &  we  was  15  Leags  Distance,  &  Dam'd  us 
&  then  he  Left  us. 

1738  Saterdav,  June  10,  made  ye  land  &  took  it  to  be  to  leward  of 
Cape  briton,  then  we  spied  Some  Ships,  2  men  of  war  &  three  or  four 
Scooners  &   Sloops,  &  they  bore  away,  &  we  followed  them,  c^  went  ni 


486  OULD   NEWBURY 

to  ("labiroose.  the  wind   blew   verry  hard,  tliey  told  us   ye   Soldiers  was 
landed  a  thirsdav,  but  we  did  not  know  ye  Particulars  till  we  Landed. 

175S.  .Sunday.  June  11  is  fair  weather.  I  left  6  dollars  with  paul 
Gerrishes  «S;  he  8  with  Capt.  wells,  we  all  went  ashore  in  ye  forenoon, 
when  the  army  Landed,  the  Boats  Got  within  3  or  4  Rods  of  the  Shore 
before  they  Saw  any  &  then  they  Rise  up  &  fir'd  a  \'ally  on  them  with 
Cannon  &  Small  arms,  ye  Cannon  Loden  with  Small  Shot,  the  Regulars 
&  Hilanders  landed  in  ye  front  &  the  Rangers  Landed  on  the  left  up 
ye  Bay.  &  they  Kild  &  wounded  a  bout  a  hundred,  there  was  2  or  3 
boats  Sunk  by  the  mens  being  so  eager  &  filling  ye  Boats  so  full,  ye 
Rangers  Started  them  first,  they  Ran  &  hoUow'd  &  fir'd  on  behind  them 
&  they  left  their  Brest  work:  they  had  10  or  12  cannon  i  :  24  pounder 
which  was  one  of  the  tilburys  Guns,  their  Brest  work  was  from  one  End 
to  the  other  was  4  mile,  they  had  2  Morters  fix'd  &  did  heare  Some 
Shell  X  :  in  ye  afternoon  we  built  some  Camps  to  Lye  in,  &  then  we 
went  almost  over  to  ye  City  &  Saw  Some  Men  without,  they  had  burnt 
all  ye  out  houses,  then  the  Soldiers  took  5  horses  &  brout  them  in. 

I  758,  Wednesday,  July  26.  Last  night  there  was  a  number  of  men 
of  war  men  got  boats  and  went  and  boarded  the  2  Ships  that  Lye  in 
ye  harbour,  one  Ship  they  toed  up  ye  harbour,  &  ye  other  .Ship  which 
was  ye  Commodores  Ketcht  a  ground,  so  that  they  Could  not  get  her 
of,  &  they  Ketcht  her  on  fire  &  she  burnt  down,  in  ye  forenoon  there  was 
a  flag  of  truce  Came  out  &  Sot  with  our  officers,  &  About  Eight  at 
night  they  agreed  to  our  terms,  &  at  nine  a  clock  our  people  went  in  & 
took  possession  of  ye  town. 

1758,  thirsday.  July  27,  this  morning  there  was  three  Companys  of 
Granideers  Draw"d  up  &  went  Close  to  ye  town,  &  about  Eleven  of  ye 
Clock  they  marchtd  in,  ye  first  Comp  that  went  in  is  ye  Royal  Scots,  ye 
2  is  hopsons,  ye  3  was  General  Amihust,  at  twelve  a  Clock  ye  English 
Coulers  were  hoisted,  the  Wagons  Came  down  to  Carry  away  ye  bag- 
gage, and  all  ye  afternoon  they  were  a  hauling  away  Guns  &  other  Stuff, 
the  Centrys  were  Sot  all  around  ye  City  that  there  Should  Nothing  be 
Caried  out  but  what  was  Caried  into  the  Kings  Store. 

1758,  Sunday,  July  30,  Went  to  work  at  ye  City  a  getting  down  ye 
west  Gate  &  a  building  a  bridge  at  ye  west  gate,  yesterday  I  put  a  gun 
on  board  of  one  Mchard  Sloop,  to  carry  home.  &  I  went  round  in  ye 
City  to  View  it,  &  there  was  hardly  a  house  but  what  had  a  shot. 

1758,  tuesday,  August  ye  i,  (leneral  Wolf  went  in  to  ye  City,  &  he 
was  Saluted  with  about  20  Canon  :  no  work  to  do  to  Day,  walk  about 
ye  City.     Nothing  more  New  to  day. 

1758,  friday,  ye  10  Noyember,  this  Day  it  being  ye  Kings  births  we 
Did  l)ut  Little  wi)rk.      It  is  very  cold.      Ye  four  Regiments  were  all  nuis- 


NATHANIEL   ANA PF  487 

tred  with  new  Regimentals  on,  &  at  one  of  ye  Clock  they  iirYl  three 
Volleys.  All  the  garrison  Guns  were  fir'd,  &  all  ye  Shiping  in  ye  har- 
bour fir'd  the  Ships :  they  fir'd  first,  then  ye  Garrison,  &  then  ye 
Soldiers.  Ye  Generals  Regm  was  at  ye  great  perade,  warbeton  was  at 
ye  perade  in  ye  old  Barracks,  &  hopsons  near  ye  East  gate  &  Brags 
at  ye  west  gate. 

175S.  Monday  ye  25  December,  this  day  it  being  Crismas  Day  the 
Governor  gave  our  Compe  ye  Day  for  to  Divert  our  Selves.  Ye  fore- 
noon I  went  a  guning  :  it  is  a  fine  Pleasant  Day.  Had  a  good  Diner 
of  Roast  Beef.      Capt  write  saiTd. 

1759.  Sunday.  June  ye  17th,  this  Day  fair  Weather.  There  is  near 
thirty  Sail  of  Ships  and  Small  Craft  Sail'd  for  the  River  Snt  Larance. 
one  frigate  Capt.  Beachem  Saikd  for  Newbury,  I  put  an  Iron  on  board 
by  David  Coats.  We  went  to  the  Govenor  to  Day  for  our  Discharge, 
but  we  Could  not  Get  a  Direct  Answer.  He  wanted  us  to  tarry  until  we 
had  Relief  Sent  us  from  Boston.  Capt.  Devenport  SaiFd  for  Canada 
to  day. 

1759,  thirsday,  ye  5  July,  this  Day  fair.  Received  15  Dollars  of  Sec- 
retary. Sot  Sail  32  Carpenters  with  a  fair  wind.  Got  out  of  ye  harbour 
Between  3  &  4     clock.  Capt  homer  of  Boston  Comander. 

1759.  Thirsday.  ye  12  of  July,  this  morning  at  Day  Breaking  we 
ware  close  in  to  Cape  ann  and  very  Calm  :  we  ware  close  in  upon  A 
Ledge,  but  we  out  Boat  and  toed  her  of.  The  wind  Breaz'd  up,  and 
we  got  into  Boston  at  4  clock,  went  Ashore  and  walk't  all  Round  ye 
town.      Log'd  at  Coz  Isaac  Ridgways  &  Sup'd  there. 

1759,  Fryday,  ye  13  July,  this  morning  fine  weather.  Went  on  Board 
the  Sloop  &  got  my  things  all  &  put  them  on  Board  of  Capt.  Stocker  to 
bring  to  Newbury:  at  10  Clock  Sot  out  for  home.  Din'd  at  Norards. 
Got  as  far  as  Salem.      Log'd  at  Uncle  John  Knaps. 

1759,  Saterday,  ye  14  July,  this  Morning  by  Daylite  Some  men  from 
Newbury  Cal'd  us  up,  &  we  Sat  out  for  home,  &  got  home  at  one  Clock. 
Had  Roast  Lamb  for  Diner;  thunder  shower  afternoon,  &  here  is  ye 
End  of  ye  Louisberg  Champain.  Same  Day  ye  Lightning  Struck  Capt 
Gwyn  house. 

It  will  be  noted  that,  on  two  occasions  at  least,  the 
writer  of  the  diary  mentions  the  fact  that  he  has  sent  home 
souvenirs  from  the  captured  city.  Sunday,  the  thirtieth  day 
of  July,  1758,  he  writes,  "Yesterday  I  put  a  gun  on  board 
of  one  Mc'hard  sloop  to  carry  home."  And  again,  Sunday, 
June  17,  1759,  he  says:   "one  frigate,  Capt.   Beachem,  Sail'd 


488  OULD   XFAVIUJRY 

for  Ncwhui")".  1  }nit  an  Iron  on  board  b)'  David  Coats."  This 
last  entry  may  ])ossibly  refer  to  the  shijiment,  under  the  care 
of  David  Coats,  of  the  iron  shell  that  now  surmounts  the 
stone  ])ost  at  the  corner  of  the  streets  previously  named. 

June  24,  1760,  about  one  year  after  his  return  from  Louis- 
burg,  he  purchased  of  his  father,  Nathaniel  Knapp,  Sr.,  one 
of  the  houses  owned  by  him,  and  described  in  the  deed  of 
conveyance,  as  follows  :  "  The  dwelling  house  and  land  in 
New  Lane,  bounded  southerly  three  rods  on  New  Lane, 
easterly  five  rods  on  land  of  Stephen  Moody,  northerly  three 
rods  on  land  of  Ambrose  Davis,  and  westerly  five  rods  on 
land  of  Nathaniel  Knapp  and  Ambrose  Colby  "  (book  iio, 
page  107). 

In  this  house,  Nathaniel  Knapp,  Jr.,  lived  for  many  years  ; 
and  most,  if  not  all,  of  his  large  family  of  children  were  born 
there.  The  adjoining  house,  occupied  by  his  father,  was 
taken  down  after  the  death  (Feb.  12,  1776)  of  Nathaniel 
Knapp,  Sr.  ;  and  the  vacant  space  between  Independent 
Street,  as  it  was  then  called,  and  the  residence  of  Nathaniel 
Knapp,  Jr.,  was  utilized  as  a  garden  plot. 

The  children  of  Nathaniel  Knapp,  Jr.,  and  Alary  (Mirick) 
Knapp  were  as  follows  :  — 

Jacob,  born  Nov.  22,  1757;   lost  with  the  privateer  "Yankee  Hero." 

Sarah,  born  April  3,  1760:   died  March  14.  i  N3  i . 

Mary,  born  July  24,  1762;   died  Nov.  22,  1765. 

Nathaniel,  born  Aug.  30,  1764;  died  Feb.  25,  1S33. 

Mary,  born  June  9,  1767. 

I.saac,  born  May  23,  1769;  died  Dec.  2,  1770. 

Elizabeth,  born  Aug.  25,  1771  :   died  Feb,  12,  1S31. 

Isaac,  born  Jan.  25,  1774;  died  Dec.  22,  1S49. 

Anthony,  born  April  12,  1776;   died  May  2,  1776. 

Anthony,  l^orn  March  4,  177S:   man-icd  Dollv  Merrill. 

Mary  (Mirick)  Knap])  died  May  29,  1779;  and  Nathaniel 
Knapp,  Jr.,  married  Judith  Rolfe  Nov.  26,  17S0.  She  died 
June  28,  1790;  and  Mr.  Knapp  married,  for  his  third  wife, 
Patty  Lurvey  Feb.  16,  1794-5.  He  died  July  6,  18 16,  and 
was  biuied  on  the  southerl)'  side  of  the  Old  Hill  burying 
groimd,  near    I'ond    .Street.      His  widow  tlicd    Jmie    19,  1847. 


NATHANIEL    KNAPP  489 

At  the  bejj;innin;;"  of  the  Revolutionary  War,  Captain 
Moses  Nowell,  of  Ne\vbur)i)ort,  organized  a  miHtary  company, 
and  started  at  eleven  t)'clock  at  night,  immediately  after  the 
battle  of  Lexington,  to  join  the  Continental  forces  in  the 
assertion  of  their  rights  and  in  the  defence  of  their  lives  and 
fortunes.  Benjamin  Perkins  was  lieutenant  of  the  company  ; 
Paul  Lunt,  sergeant  ;  Caleb  Haskell,  drummer.  The  number 
of  men  in  the  ranks  was  one  hundred  and  fifteen  ;  and  amon<r 
them  was  Jacob  Knapp,  then  onl)'  eighteen  years  of  age, 
son  of  Nathaniel  Knapp  and  Mary  (Mirick),  his  wife.  The 
company  returned  to  Newburyport  after  a  brief  service  in 
the  vicinity  of  BostcMi. 

In  the  latter  part  of  May,  another  company  was  organized, 
with  Benjamin  Perkins  as  captain.  Jacob  Knapp  served  in 
this  company  in  the  battle  at  Bunker  Hill.  One  of  his  com- 
rades, Samuel  Nelson,  was  slain  in  the  battle  ;  and  another, 
Jonathan  Norton,  was  wounded,  so  that  he  soon  after  died  of 
his  wounds. 

A  few  months  later  Jacob  Knapp  sailed  in  the  pri\-ateer 
"Yankee  Hero,"  from  Newburyport,  on  a  cruise  to  the  West 
Indies  for  the  purpose  of  intercepting  English  ships  laden 
with  merchandise  or  supplies  for  the  army.  The  vessel  car- 
ried twenty  guns,  and  was  manned  by  one  hundred  and 
seventy  men,  including  fifty  from  the  first  families  of  New- 
buryport. After  leaving  the  harbor  on  this  unfortunate 
voyage,  the  vessel,  officers,  and  crew  were  never  heard  from 
again. 

Isaac  Knapp,  son  of  Nathaniel  Knapp,  Jr.,  came  intcj  pos- 
session of  the  house  and  land  on  the  corner  of  Middle  and 
Independent  Streets  by  inheritance  and  by  purchase  .from 
other  heirs  of  the  property.  He  was  born  Jan.  25,  1774,  and 
married  Betsy  Hoyt  July  7,  1802.  The  children  by  this 
marriage  were  as  follows:  — 

Elizabeth,  born  July  31.  1S05  :   married  William  Pritchard. 
Mary,  born  Dec.  14.  r.So6:   died  Sept.  25,  1825. 
George  W.,  born  Dec.  12,  1808:  died  Sept.  11.  1836. 
Charles  Hart,  born  April  5,  1810:   died  Feb.  12,  1821. 


KATHAXIEL    KNAPP  49  ^ 

James  Nelson,  born  Jan.  13,  1S14:  four  years  mayor  of  the  city  of  New- 
port. Wales.  England;    died  April  24.  iS7(j. 

Jackson.  l:)orn  Sept.  24.  1815:   died  .Sept.  25.  1815. 

Sarah,  born  March  12.  181S:  married  (icorge  Adams,  of  Portsmouth. 
N.  H.:   died  in  California  March  31.  [873. 

Isaac  Knapp,  wi.shing  to  commemorate  the  loyalty  and 
patriotism  of  his  father,  Nathaniel  Knapp,  Jr.,  and  his 
brother,  Jacob  Knapp,  selected  the  iron  shell  sent  home  from 
Louisburg  in  1759  as  an  apj^ropriate  memorial,  and  caused 
it  to  be  placed  on  the  stone  post  at  the  junction  of  the  two 
streets  where  his  father  and  brother  formerly  lived,  and 
where  it   has  remained  to   the  present   day. 

July  <S,  1848,  Isaac  Knapp  sold  to  his  brother-in-law,  Will- 
iam Pritchard,  the  premises  previously  described  (Essex- 
Deeds,  book  399,  page  246).  April  12,  1867,  William 
Pritchard  sold  the  land,  with  the  buildings  thereon,  to 
?klichael    Murphy    (book    723,   page   256). 

Soon  after  the  last-named  date  the  old  house  was  removed 
and  two  double  tenement  houses  erected  on  the  site.  The 
conve)'ances  from  Mary  Murph}',  widow  of  Michael  Miu-ph}-, 
to  her  daughter,  Mary  A.  Burgess,  dated  Sept.  17,  1885, 
recorded  in  book  11  58,  page  47,  and  from  Mary  A.  Burgess 
to  Mary  V.  Healey,  wife  of  Dr.  James  J.  Healey,  dated 
October,  1891,  recorded  in  book  1325,  page  133,  give  the 
title  to  the  property  at  the  present  time. 


WOLFE  TAVERN. 


May  4,  1726,  Jonathan  Dole,  of  Newbur}',  saddler,  sold 
Samuel  Greenleaf,  of  Newbury,  tailor,  about  ten  rods  of  land, 
no  buildin^2;s  mentioned,  for  ^,'25,  bounded  and  described  as 
follows  :  southerly  on  Fish  Street  or  Greenleaf's  lane,  east- 
erly by  land  of  Paul  Shackford,  northerly  and  westerly  b)- 
land  of  the  grantor  (Essex  Deeds,  book  47,  page  127). 

Oct.  24,  1 74 1,  Samuel  Greenleaf,  of  Newbury,  tailor,  sold 
William  Davenport,  of  Newbury,  carver,  the  above-described 
lot  of  land   with    dwelling-house  thereon  (book  82,  page  22). 

Aug.  5,  1743,  Jonathan  Dole,  of  Newbury,  saddler,  sold 
William  Davenport,  of  Newbury,  carver,  a  lot  of  land,  ct)n- 
taining  nine  rods,  seventy-two  feet,  more  or  less,  adjoining 
land  of  the  said  Davenport,  and  bounded  on  the  south  by 
land  of  the  grantee,  on  the  west  by  a  way  one  rod  broad 
(now  Threadneedle  alley),  on  the  north  by  a  way  one  and  a 
half  rods  wide  (now  Inn  Street),  and  on  the  east  b}'  land  of 
the  grantor.  This  deed  was  recorded  Oct.  21,  1774,  in  the 
Essex  Registry  of  Deeds,  book  123,  page  202. 

For  twenty  years,  William  Davenport  probably  occu])icd 
the  house  purchased  of  Samuel  Greenleaf  in  1741  as  a  resi- 
dence for  himself  and  family.  In  1762,  extensive  alterations 
and  additions  were  made,  and  the  house  was  opened  for  the 
entertainment  of  travellers  under  the  name  of  Wolfe  Taxern. 

William  Davenport  probabl)'  came  to  Newbury  in  173S, 
when  he  was  twenty-one  years  of  age.  lie  was  a  great- 
grandson  of  Thomas  Da\'en]:)()rt,  who  is  recorded  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  cliurch  in  Dorchester  Nov.  20,  1640. 

Ivbene/.er  Davenport,  son  of  Thomas  Da\en])ort.  was  born 
in  Doichester,  7\]ii"il  26,  1661,  where  lie  lixed  and  died. 
James    Da\enpoit,   son    of    Ebenezei'    I  )a\  enpoit,  was    hnvu    in 


WOLFE    TAl-ERN 


493 


Dorchester  March  i,  1693.  He  married,  first,  Grace  Tileston, 
of  Dorchester  ;  second,  Sarah,  daughter  of  Josiah  and  sister 
of  Benjamin  P^rankHn  ;  and,  third,  Mary  Walker,  of  Ports- 
mouth, N.  H.  He  was  an  inn-keeper  and  baker  in  Boston. 
Samuel  A.  Drake,  in  "Landmarks  of  Boston,"  says:  — 

The  King's  Head,  another  inn  of  ••  ye  olden  time"  was  at  the  north- 
west corner  of  Fleet  and  North  Streets,  by  Scarlett's  Wharf.  It  lielongs 
to  the  first  century  of  the  settlement.  It  was  burned  in  1691.  and  re- 
built.    James  Davenport  kept  it  in  1755.  and  his  widow  in  1758. 

James  Davenport  had,  b}'  his  three  wives,  twenty-two  chil- 
dren. William,  his  eldest  son,  was  born  in  Boston  Oct.  19, 
1717. 

Rev.  John  Lowell,  minister  of  the  Third  Parish  in  New- 
bury, officiated  at  the  marriage  of  William  Davenport  to 
Sarah,  daughter  of  Moses  Gerrish,  of  Newbury,  April  3, 
1740.  P2ighteen  months  later,  William  Davenport  bought 
the  house  and  land  on   Fish   Street,  as  previously  stated. 

William  Davenport,  in  the  early  conveyances  of  real  estate 
to  and  from  him,  is  styled  "  carver."  He  undoubtedly  found 
steady  employment  at  his  trade  in  Newbury  ;  for  ship-build- 
ing was  prosperous,  and  many  vessels  were  annually  con- 
structed within  the  limits  of  the  town.  An  old  bill,  now  in 
the  possession  of  Mrs.  Catherine  (Davenport)  Pearson,  of 
Newburyport,  seems  to  corroborate  and  confirm  this  state- 
ment, and  to  furnish  conclusive  evidence  of  his  occupation  at 
that   date.      The  items  of  the  bill  are  as  follows  :  — 


Dr. 


Ralph  Cross  To  W^'  Davenport. 


1748. 

June  8.     To  a  Sea  horshead  6  foot  long 

To  fixing  the  same 

■     To  I  7  foot  of  tails  (a  9/  per  foot 

To  hair  brackets 

To  2  Scrowels  for  the  Raills 

August 

1752      To  4:^  days  labour  on  Ijord  Nathani  Newman   . 

old  tenor ,,^28 

Newbury  Dec'  24"'  1735 

To  apeice  of  timber  13  feet  long 
6  I.  thick  &  18  I.  wide. 


9.    o.  o 

I.     4.  o 

13.  o 

5.  o 
o.  o 


^23 

5 


2.  o 

12.   O 


14.  O 


494  Ori.D   XEWBURY 

Ralph  Cross  was  born  in  Ii)s\vicli  in  1706.  He  rcmoxcd 
to  Xe\vl)ui-\-  wlien  quite  a  )'()uni;-  man,  and  was  for  some  years 
an  efficient  shipwright.  April  7.  1733,  he  bought  of  Isaac 
Mirrick  and  Andrew  Mirrick,  both  of  Nantucket,  a  lot  of 
land  in  Newbury,  bounded  by  the  Merrimack  River  north- 
erly, by  the  land  of  Captain  Isaac  Mirrick  easterly,  by  a  high- 
way of  two  rods  wide  southerly,  fifty-five  feet,  six  inches,  and 
by  ye  land  of  Jonathan  Sibly  westerl)-,  "  it  being  the  whole  of 
ye  142  l(»tt  laid  to  Mr.  John  Kent,  late  of  Newbury,  deceased" 
(Essex  Deeds,  book  62,  page  237). 

In  the  month  of  September  following,  he  bought  of  Jona- 
than Sible)'  upland  and  flats  adjoining  the  previously  de- 
scribed lot.  On  this  land,  near  the  foot  of  Lime  Street,  he 
established  himself  in  business  as  a  ship-builder  ;  and  some 
years  later  his  sons,  Stephen  and  Ralph,  continued  the  busi- 
ness in  a  yard  of  their  own  at  the  foot  of  Federal  Street. 
The  charges  in  the  above  bill  are  evidently  for  carving  the 
figure-head,  trail  boards,  etc.,  for  a  vessel  built  by  Ralph 
Cross  in  1748.  Mr.  Davenport  was  probably  occupied  as  a 
ship-car\-er  until  the  breaking  out  of  the  French  and  English 
War  and  the  capture  of  Louisburg. 

Nathaniel  Knapp,  of  Newbury,  in  his  diary,  written  at  the 
second  siege  of  Louisburg,  says,  under  date  of 

Wednesday,  13  June.  1759.  this  Day  there  is  8  or  10  Sail  of  Ships: 
one  frigate  Came  in  from  Boston.  Capt.  Davenport  is  in  one  of  them, 
and  this  afternoon  I  went  on  Board  ye  Ship  to  see  Brother  John  Moody.* 
and  he  was  well  and  all  acquaintanc. 

Two  da}s  later  he  wrote  as  follows  :  — 

Friday,  ve  15,  tiiis  Day  fair  Weather.  1  was  to  work  on  ye  .Scooner 
of  Dixons.  6  .Ships  Came  in  to  Day.  1  was  on  Hoard  DeyenjKirts 
.Ship,  and  Brought  John  Moody  ashore  with  me  and  Let  him  haye  six 
dollars. 

Sunday.  June  ve  17"'  1759  — .  .  .  Capt  Dcyenport  Sail'd  for  Canada 
to  day. 

These  extracts  furnish  satisfactor}'  exidence  that  William 
Davenport   arrived  at  Louisburg   nearly  a  year  after  its  cajit- 

*  John  Moody  was  a  son  of  W'idnw  Klizaht-tli  ((;cnisli)  Mondy,  wlin  was  the  second  wife  of 
Nathaniel  Knapp,  senior. 


WOLFE    TAVERN 


495 


lire  by  the  luij^lish  and  American  forces,  and  sailed  June  17, 
1759,  with  the  expedition  for  the  reductit)n  of  Quebec.  The 
company,  under  the  command  of  Captain  Davenport,  con- 
sisted of  the  following:  officers  and  men  :  — 


William  Davenport.  Capt. 
Thomas  Sweet,  Lieut. 
(lersham  Burbank,  Lieut. 
Jonathan  Merrill,  Ensign. 
Moses  George,  Sergt. 
John  Moody,  Serg't. 
Daniel  Pike,  Serg't. 
Matthew  Pettingill,  .S'ergt. 
Joshua  Colby,  Corp. 
Thomas  Ford,  Corp. 
Stephen  Morse,  Corp. 
Daniel  Poor,  Corp. 
William  Stevens,  Drum. 

Friiujtes. 

1  Luke  Swett. 

2  Joseph  Woodman. 

3  Thomas  Barnard. 

4  John  Brock. 

5  Pall  Coffin. 

6  William  Matthews. 

7  James  Ward. 

8  John  Caswell. 

9  Daniel  Knight. 
10   Nathaniel  Roby. 
I  I    Richard  Pierce. 
12  Thomas  Moody. 


Privates  (eontin  ued). 

13  Stephen  Colby. 

14  Ezra  Cluff. 

1  5   Daniel  Pillsbury. 

16  Joshua  Morse. 

17  Samuel  Huse. 

18  Eleazar  Burbank. 

19  Enoch  Bagley. 

20  Zachariah  Beal. 

2  r    William  Griffin. 

22  Jeremiah  Pearson. 

23  Enoch  Chase.  ~ 

24  Edmund  Baily,  Jr. 

25  John  Stevens. 

26  Andrew  Hilton. 

27  Paul  Pearson. 

28  Nathan  Peabody. 

29  Samuel  Wyatt. 

30  William  Cheney. 

31  Nathaniel  Brown. 

32  William  Clarke. 

33  Richard  Sanborn. 

34  Zebediah  Hunt. 

35  Michael  Short. 

36  Sherborn  Tilton. 

37  Jacob  Burrill. 

38  John  Currier.* 


Most  of  the  men  composing  this  company  were  natives  of 
Newbury.  In  the  list  will  be  found  the  name  of  John 
Moody,  sergeant,  who  was  evidently  the  "brother  John 
Moody  "  to  whom  reference  is  made  by  Nathaniel  Knapp  in 
his  diary.  The  accidental  meeting  of  these  two  Newbury 
men  in  the  harbor  of  Louisburg  is  a  noteworthy  incident 
that  serves  to  establish  the  historical  fact  that  Captain 
Davenport  went  by  the  way  of  Boston  and  the  ri\er  St. 
Lawrence  to  Canada. 


*  Massachusetts  Arcliives,  volume  yy,  pages  325  and  326. 


496  ori.D   XEWIURY 

lie  was  with  his  compain'  on  the  I'lains  of  Abraham  Sejjt. 
13'  •759>  \\l'"^'ii  ("'t-'iieral  Wolfe  was  killed,  and  was  present 
at  the  surrender  of  Quebec  a  few  da)s  later.  At  the  expira- 
tion of  his  term  of  service  he  returned  home,  and  filed  with 
the  proper  authorities  in  Boston  a  pa}-roll  ft)r  wages  due  the 
men  under  his  command,  to  which  he  made  oath  Jan.  31, 
1760.  .Vmonj;"  the  items  included  in  a  separate  bill,  rendered 
at  the  same  time  for  expenses  incurred  by  him  during  the 
campaign,  is  a  charge  of  ^,2  4\.  for  "  transporting  m\- 
baggage  from  Newbury  to  Boston,"  and  12^'.  for  "transport- 
ing self,  men,  &  baggage  to  Nantasket." 

In  the  spring  of  1760,  the  French  forces  in  Canada  were 
e\identl\'  making  preparations  to  recapture  Quebec,  and  New 
England  was  again  called  upon  to  furnish  men  to  resist  the 
attack.  In  March,  Captain  DavenjDort  enlisted  eighteen  men 
"  for  the  total  reduction  of  Canada,"  and  in  April  four  more 
for  the  same  service.  The  names  of  the  enlisted  men  on  the 
first  list  are  as  follows  :  — 

Jolm  Carr.  l)orn  in  Xewl^urv.  resident  of   Xewbury.  age  21,  .son  of  John 

Carr. 
Jeremiah    Morse,   born   in   Newhurv.  resident   of   Newbury,  age  17.  ser- 
vant to  Nathaniel  Bartlett. 
William  Hills,  born  in   Newburv.  resident   of   Newbury,  age  17.  servant 

to  Joshua  Baley. 
Samuel  Huse.  born  in  Newburv.  resident  of  .\ewlnnv.  age  17.  grandson 

to  Charles  Chase. 
John   Davis,  born   in   Andover.   resident   of   Newbury,    age    ly.    son   to 

Mark  Davis. 
Isaac  Mason,  born  in  New  Market,  resident  of  Newbury,  age  26. 
John  Owens,  born  in  Wales,  resident  of  Newbury,  age  30. 
James  Martain.  born  in  Newbury,  resident  of   Newbury,  age  iS.  servant 

to  Daniel  Chute. 
Simeon  Ceorge,  l)orn  in  Newl)ur\'.  resident  of  Xewburw  age  17.  servant 

to  Abraham  C.allisham. 
Daniel  Lowell,  born  in  .\]msl)urv.  resident  of  .Newbury,  age  iS. 
Stephen    Coleby.    born    in    .\lmsbury.    resident    oi    Newburv.    age    19. 

servant  to  Moses    Todd. 
Mnoch    Chase,  born   in    Newbur\-.  resident   of    .Newl)niv.  age  17.  servant 

to  Stephen  luigland. 
Henry  Dow.  born  in  Salisbury,  resident  of    .Newl)urv.  age  ly.  servant  to 

Nathan  Allen. 


WOLFE    TAVERN  497 

Robert  Matthews,  born  in  Canso.  resident  of   Ne\vl)ury.  age    iS.  servant 

to   Mark  Haskell.  Cape  Ann. 
John   Leatherland.   born  in   Ipswich,   resident   of    Ipswich,   age    17,  son 

to  Sarah  Leatherland. 
Leonard  Harrison,  born  in  Rowley,  resident  of  Newbury,  age  21. 
Isaac   Stickney.   born  in   Rowley,  resident  of   Newbury,  age    19.  son  to 

Samuel  Stickney. 
David  Haskell,  born  in  Cape  Ann.  resident  of  Newbury,  age  19,  servant 

to  Caleb  Ha.skell. 

The  above-named  persons  appeared  before  Joseph  (lerrish, 
Jr.,  commissary  of  masters  and  justice  of  the  peace,  March 
14,  1760,  and  were  duly  accepted  as  able-bodied  men. 
The  second  list  contains  the  following  names  :  — 

Isaac  Baley,  born  in  Newbury,  resident  of   Newbury,  age    17,  servant  to 

Daniel  Clarke. 
Richard  Tucker,  born  in  Newbury,  resident  of  Newbury,  age  iS,  servant 

to  Dimond  Currier. 
Moses  Pike,   born  in   Newbury,   resident   of    Newbury,   age   17.   son  to 

Thomas   Pike. 
Stephen  Danford,  born  in  Bradford,  resident  of  Bradford,  age  21. 

Isaac  Baley  appeared  before  Joseph  Gerrish,  Jr.,  Richard 
Tucker  and  Moses  Pike  before  Joseph  Cofifin,  and  Stephen 
Danford  before  John  Osgood,  and  were  duly  accepted  for 
his  Majesty's  service  (Massachusetts  Archives,  Muster  Rolls, 
volume  97,  pages  416  and  417). 

There  is  no  evidence  that  Captain  Davenport  again  entered 
the  service  for  a  second  campaign,  although  he  was  actively 
interested  in  procuring  recruits  for  the  re-enforcement  of  the 
English  ami)'. 

The  tradition  that  he  gave  his  wife  a  guinea  when  he  left 
Newbury  in  1759  to  join  the  troops  assembled  for  the  first 
attack  upon  Quebec,  which  she,  by  prudence  and  economy, 
was  able  to  return  to  him  unused  when  he  reached  home 
again,  may  be  literally  true  ;  but  at  the  same  time  it  must 
be  remembered  that,  if  he  had  only  a  guinea  in  ready  money 
at  his  command,  he  was  the  owner  of  considerable  valuable 
property,  the  income  of  which  was  probably  at  the  disposal 
of  his  wife. 


498  OULD    A'KWBCKY 

In  1762.  til  meet  the  clcniands  of  the  travelHng'  i)uhHe, 
he  conxerted  his  d\velliiii;-h()use  on  the  corner  of  Thread- 
needle  alley  and  l-'ish  Street  (now  State  Street)  into  a 
tavern,  and  \\\\\v^  from  a  loft\-  ])ole  a  swinging  sign,  embel- 
lished with  a  t|uaint  portrait  of   (ieneral  Wolfe. 

In  the  days  of  William  Daxcnport  the  ta\-ern  was  a  popu- 
lar place  of  resort.  Under  its  roof  the  hungry  and  thirsty 
found  comfort,  shelter,  good  suppers,  and  good  wine.  Satur- 
day evening,  from  all  parts  of  the  town,  men  came  to  the 
tavern  to  hear  the  news  and  to  discuss  politics,  theology,  and 
the  state  of  the  crops.  During  the  winter  months  farmers 
from  the  surrounding  country  brought  pork,  butter,  grain, 
eggs,  and  ])oultry  to  market,  and  gathered  in  the  capacious 
bar-room  at  night,  around  the  cheerful,  blazing'  fire,  to  while 
away  the  time  with  mugs  of  flip  and  mulled  cider.  The  land 
traxel  from  Maine  and  the  eastern  part  of  New  Hampshire 
passed  through  Newbury  on  the  way  to  Boston;  and  Wolfe 
Tavern,  or  Davenport's  Inn,  as  it  was  often  called,  soon 
became  a  famous  resort. 

The  arrival  and  departure  of  the  stage-coach  brought  reli- 
able information  from  distant  places,  while  items  of  local 
interest  were  gathered  from  well-known  and  prominent  men 
about  town.  Alice  Morse  Earle,  in  "  New  England  Customs 
and  Fashions,"  says:  — 

It  must  l)e  remembered  that  our  universal  modern  source  of  in 
formation,  the  newspaper,  did  not  then  exist.  There  were  a  few  journals, 
of  course,  of  scant  circulation ;  but  of  what  we  now  deem  news  they 
contained  nothing.  Information  of  current  events  came  through  hear- 
ing and  talking,  not  through  reading.  Hence  it  came  to  be  that  an  inn- 
keeper was  not  only  influential  in  local  affairs,  but  was  universally 
known  as  the  best-informed  man  in  the  place.  Reporters,  so  to  speak, 
rendered  their  accounts  to  him  :  items  of  foreign  and  local  news  were 
sent  to  liim  :   he  was  in  himself  an  entire  Associated  I'ress. 

At  the  taxcrn,  hot  rum  jnmch  and  egg  todd)'  were  inter- 
mi.xed  with  gossi]:)  of  the  da}'  and  vigorous  political  discus- 
sions. The  modci-n  doctrine  of  total  abstinence  from  the 
use  oi  intoxicating  lic|uors  had  few  acKocates  a  centin'\'  ago. 
In  those  <'"oo(j  old  times  wine  and  strouL;'  drink  were  trenerallv 


WOLFE    TAJ'ERN 


499 


jDrovided  at  funerals  for  mourning  relatives  as  well  as  for 
joyous  guests  at  the  marriage  feast  ;  and  the  courage  and 
patriotism  of  those  who  stoutly  resisted  the  encroachments 
of  King  George  III.  were  evidently  stimulated  and  encour- 
aged by  frequent  libations  of  punch  and  toddy. 

A  curious  old  bill,  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  George 
Davenport,  of  Boston,  a  lineal  descendant  of  William 
Davenport,  well  illustrates  the  customs  and  habits  that 
prevailed  just  previous  to  the  Revolution,  and,  indirectly,  re- 
veals the  means  and  methods  adopted  to  arouse  enthusiasm 
and  create  a  public  sentiment  that  would  lead  to  the  repeal 
of  the  odious  Stamp  Act.  The  items  of  the  bill  are  as 
follows  :  — 


Dr.  Messrs.  Joseph  .Stanwood  &  others  Of  the  Town  of  Newburyport,  for  .Sundry  Expences  at 
My  House  on  Thirsday  Sept'"  26tli  A.D.  1765,  at  tlie  CJreate  Uneasmess  and  Tumult  on  Occa- 
sion of  the  Stamp  Act. 

To  William  Davenport.  Old  Tenor                           Per  Contrcx  Cr 

By  an  order  from 

To  3  Double  Bowles  punch  by  Capt  Kobuds  ( )rder  ^3.,  7, ,6     Capt  Robuds  for          ^3,,  7,,  6 

To  7  Double  Bowles  of  punch 7.,  7, ,6 

To  Double  Bowl  of  Egg  Toddy 14 

To  Double  punch  22/6  Single  bowl  1 1/3  ....  i,,i3,,g 

Xo  Double  Bowl  punch  22/6  Double  bowl  toddy  12/  i,,  i4.,6 

To  bowl  punch  11/3  Bowl  toddy  6/ 17, ,3 

To  Double  bowl  Toddy  12/  bowl  punch  11/3    .     .  i,,  3„3 

To  Double  Bole  punch  22/6  Nip  Toddy  3/        .     .  i„  5, ,6 

To  mug  flip  5/  To  a  Thrible  bowl  punch  33/9  .     .  i,,i8,,q 

To  Double  bowl   punch  22/6  To  a  Thrible  bowl 

Ditto  33/9 2,, 16, ,3     By  Cash  by  Richard 

To  a  Double  bowl  punch  22/6 i,,  2, ,6     Favour      ....       .£2,,  5,,  o 

To  a  Double  bowl  punch  22/6 i,,  2, ,6     By  Cash  by  Coleby          i,,  2,,  6 

To   a   Thrible   Bowl   punch   33/9    Double    Bowl  2,,  16,, 3     By  Cash  by  Coleby          i,,  2,,  6 

Ditto  22/6 

To  a  Double  Bowl  pimch  22/6  Bowl  Ditto  11/3     .  i,,i3,,9 

To  a  Double  Bowl  punch  22/6  to  Double  bowl 

Ditto  22/6 2„  5 

To  6  Lemons  15/  to  bowl  of  puncli  1 1/3  ....  i,,  6,, 3     By  Cash  by  Coleby      ^1,,  6,,  o 

To  2  Double  Bowles  punch 2,,  5,,       By  Cash  by  Coleby          2,,  5,,  o 

To  Double  Bowl  punch  22/6  bowl  punch  11/3        .  i,,i3,,q 

To  2  Double  bowles  punch  45/  to  bowl  punch  11/3  2,,  16,, 3 

To  Bowl  punch  11/3  To  bowl  punch  11/3     ...  i,,  2, ,6     By  Cash  by  Coleby          o,,ii,,  3 

To  the  Suppers  which  were  Cooked  Hot  ....  2,,  5                                                 ^ii,,i9,,g 

To  S  Double  Bowles  punch  after  Supper  .     ...  9,,             Lawful  money   .     .       ^i„ii,,ii5 

To  Double  Bowl  Toddy  12/  Bowl  punch  11/3  .     .  i,,  3. ,3 

the  27tli  To  Bowl  of  Egg  Toddy  7/ 7,, 

To  6  pintes  and  1/2  of  Spirits  «   10/  pr  Point   .  3,,  5,, 

To  a  Breakfast  of  Coffee  for  ,Sd  Company     ...  2,,  5,, 

Lawful  money     .      .     .  i^7,.i9,,7„5- 
Nfwburyi'ort,  28  Sept.  1765. 

Erors  excepted  p.  Wii.lia.m  Davenport. 


500  Oi'LJ^    XKIVBURY 

Coffin,  in  his  Histor}'  ot  Xcwbur)',  page  231,  says:  — 

In  Newburyport  the  effigy  of  a  Mr.  I —  H — .  who  had  accepted  the 
office  of  stamp  distributor,  was  suspended  .September  25th  and  26th 
from  a  large  ehn-tree  which  stood  in  Mr.  Jonathan  Greenleaf's  yard,  at 
the  foot  of  King  .Street  (now  Federal  Street)  a  collection  of  tar  barrels 
set  on  fire,  the  rope  cut.  and  the  image  dropped  into  the  flames.  At 
ten  o'clock  I'..m.  all  the  bells  in  town  were  rung.  '•  I  am  sorry  to  see 
that  substitute."  said  a  distinguished  citizen  of  Newburyport :  ••  I  wish 
it  had  been  the  original."  Companies  of  men.  armed  with  clubs,  were 
accustomed  to  parade  the  streets  of  Newbury  and  Newburyport  at 
night,  and  to  eyery  man  they  met  put  the  laconic  question.  •■  Stamp  or 
no  stamp."  The  consequences  of  an  affirmatiye  reply  were  anything 
but  pleasant.  In  one  instance,  a  stranger,  haying  arrived  in  town,  was 
seized  by  the  mob  at  the  foot  of  (jreen  Street,  and.  not  knowing  what 
answer  to  make  to  the  question,  stood  mute.  As  the  mob  allow  no 
neutrals,  and  as  silence  with  them  is  a  crime,  he  was  severely  beaten. 
The  same  question  was  put  to  another  stranger,  who  replied  with  a 
sagacity  worthy  of  a  vicar  of  Bray  or  a  Talleyrand.  ••  I  am  as  you  are." 
He  was  immediately  cheered  and  applauded  as  a  true  son  of  liberty,  and 
permitted  to  depart  in  peace,  wondering,  no  doul)t.  at  his  own  sudden 
popularity. 

Sept.  30,  1765,  the  town  of  Xe\vbiuTi'>ort  xoted  that  "  the 
late  act  of  parliament  is  very  grievous,  and  that  this  town  as 
much  as  in  them  lies  endeavour  the  repeal  of  the  same  in  all 
lawful  wa)s,  and  that  it  is  the  desire  of  the  town  that  no 
man  in  it  will  accept  of  the  ofifice  of  distributing  the  stampt 
papers,  as  he  regards  the  pleasure  of  the  town,  and  that  they 
will  deem  the  person  accepting  of  such  office  an  enemy  to 
his   coimtry." 

It  is  |)()ssible  that  the  timuilt  and  commotion  of  those 
memorable  da)'s,  and  even  the  inspiration  of  the  resolve 
adopted  b)-  the  patriotic  citizens  of  Newburyport,  may  be 
traced  to  the  influence  of  the  pimch  jirepared  by  Landlord 
])a\en])()rt  for  Joseph  Stanwood  and  other  worth)'  guests  on 
the  evening  of  Sept.  25,  1765. 

In  the  early  days  of  Masonr)',  St.  l^eter's  Lodge  of  1^'ree 
and  Accepted  Masons  often  met  at  Mr.  Davenport's  inn,  and 
the  Newburyport  Marine  Societ)-  foi-  man}-  years  held  its 
i-egular  monthh'  meetings  thei-e. 


WOLFE    TA  VERX 


501 


William  Daxenport  died  Sept.  2,  1773,  and  was  buried  on 
the  crest  of  the  Old  Hill  burying  ground,  near  the  Hill  Street 
entrance.      His  children  were  as  follows  :  — 

Mary,  baptized  March  i.  1741. 

Grace,  born  Sept.  12.  1743:   baptized  Sept.  i  S,  1743. 

Mary,  born  June  i.  1746:   baptized  June  i,  1746. 

Moses,  born  Feb.  20,  1747-8:   baptized  Fel).  2.S.  1747-8. 

Elizabeth,  baptized  March  4,  1750. 

Anthony,  baptized  March  22.  1752. 

Sarah,  baptized  May  19.  1754. 

Moses,  baptized  July  24.  1757. 

In  the  inventory  of  his  estate,  taken  Oct.  3,  1773,  the  fol- 
lowing interesting  items  appear,  with  the  appraised  values 
annexed  :  — 


one  neo;ro  woman     .... 

£-. 

0.  0 

one  ditto  child 

7 

0.  0 

160  gals.  West  India  Rum     . 

21 

6.  8 

18  gals.  Wine 

4 

t6.  0 

20  gals.  Cherry  Rum    . 

2 

0.  0 

8  gals.  Spirits 

1 

I-  4 

9  bbls.  Cider 

4 

14.  0 

I  gun 

12.  0 

William  Davenport  was  also  the  ownier  of  considerable  real 
estate  within  the  limits  of  Newbury  and  Newburyport.  One 
lot,  several  acres  in  extent,  just  beyond  the  New  Hill  burying 
ground,  is  still  known  by  the  name  of  Davenport's  hill.  Feb. 
I3>  ^77 '^^  William  Davenport  purchased  this  land  of  the 
estate  of  Oliver  Clark.  The  deed  of  conveyance  is  recorded 
in  the  Essex  Registry  of  Deeds,  book  128,  page  209.  The 
land  afterward  came  into  the  possession  of  Anthony  Daven- 
port, his  son,  by  inheritance  and  by  purchase  from  other  heirs 
(book  139,  page   167). 

Letters  of  administration  were  granted  Anthony  Daven- 
port in  October,  1773,  for  the  settlement  of  his  father's 
estate.  He  was  then  only  about  twenty-one  years  of  age, 
but  seems  to  have  conducted  the  business  of  the  old  tavern 
successfully  until  his  brother  Moses  was  old  enough  to  serve 


WOLFE    TAVERN  l^l 

in  his  place,  and  was  licensed  as  an  innholder  by  the  court  at 
Ipswich. 

Under  the  management  of  Moses  Davenport  the  business 
continued  to  jM-osper  and  the  number  of  patrons  increased. 

In  1782,  Marquis  de  Chastellux,  who  served  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary army  under  Rochambeau,  made  Davenport's  Inn  his 
headquarters  during  his  stay  in  Newburyport,  and  briefly 
mentions  the  fact  in  the  published  account  of  his  travels 
through  Xew  England. 

An  old  almanac,  printed  in  1788  by  Nathaniel  Low,  gives 
the  names  of  the  most  noted  innholders  on  the  road  from 
Boston  to  Portsmouth.  In  the  list  is  "  Putnam  of  New- 
bury"  and  "Davenport  of  Newburyport."  The  first-named 
undoubtedly  refers  to  Oliver  Putnam,  who  kept  a  tavern  in 
what  is  now  known  as  the  Ilsley  house,  on  High  Street,  near 
the  head  of  Marlborough  Street. 

A  skilful  artist,  by  the  name  of  Aiken,  residing  in  New- 
buryport, made  about  this  time  an  admirable  engraving  of 
the  old  Wolfe  Tavern,  which  has  been  reproduced  by  the 
half-tone  process  for  the  illustration  of  this  sketch.  The 
artist  himself  subsequently  acquired  considerable  notoriety  by 
the  retaliatory  measures  he  adopted  to  mortify  and  humiliate 
a  fellow-townsman  (Edmund  M.  Blunt,  the  publisher  of 
Bowditch's  Navigator  and  Coast  Charts),  with  whom  he 
had  quarrelled. 

In  1804,  Thomas  Perkins,  after  some  years  of  service  with 
Moses  Davenport,  was  licensed  as  an  innholder,  and  assumed 
control  of  Wolfe  Tavern  on  his  own  account.  He  was  born 
in  Topsfield  May  28,  1773,  and  married  Elizabeth  Storey, 
of  Essex,  P^eb.  16,  1804.  His  son,  Henry  C.  Perkins,  after- 
ward an  eminent  physician  of  Newburyport,  was  born  in 
one  of  the  upper  chambers  of  the  tavern  Nov.  13,  1804. 

The  columns  of  the  Newburyport  Herald  contain  some  ad- 
vertisements that  seem  to  indicate  that  Mr.  Perkins  did  not 
occupy  the  position  of  landlord  for  more  than  three  years. 
Under  the  date  of  June  8,  1804,  the  following  announcement 
appears  : — 


504  OULD   NEWBURY 

The  mail  sta<(e  from  I'ortsmoutli  will  leave  Perkins"  Tavern  (formerly 
Davenport's^,  xXewburyport.  at  half  past  12  o'clock  I'.M.  every  day 
(Sundays  excepted).  Benjamin   Hale. 

The  paper  for  March  31,  1807.  has  this  notice:  — 

The  Proprietors  of  the  southeast  division  of  the  Fourth  (General  Past- 
ure in  Newburv  and  Xewburvport  are  hereby  notified  and  warned  to 
meet  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Thomas  Perkins,  innholder.  in  Xewburyport. 
on  the  14"'  dav  of  April  next. 

May  15,  1807,  "Emperor  Francis,"  a  tonsorial  artist  of 
some  celebrity,  announced  that  he  had  opened  rooms  on 
State  Street,  Newburyport,  "  one  door  above  the  celebrated 
General  Wolfe  Tavern,  now  kept  by  Mr.  Stetson." 

It  is  evident  from  the  above  citations  that  between  the 
thirty-first  day  of  March  and  the  fifteenth  day  of  May,  1807, 
Mr.  Prince  Stetson  took  possession  of  the  house,  and  was 
duly  established  therein  as  landlord.  He  continued  to  serve 
the  public  in  that  capacity  until  the  great  fire  of  181 1.  His 
son,  Charles  Stetson,  was  afterward  connected  with  the  Astor 
House  in  New  York  City,  and  was  exceedingly  popular  with 
the  patrons  of  that  famous  hostelry. 

In  the  list  of  buildings  burned  in  Newburyport  May  31, 
181  I  (published  in  the  columns  of  the  Xci^'buiyport  Herald), 
will  be  found  "  the  dwelling  house  and  barn  of  Prince  Stet- 
son." Two  weeks  later  (June  14,  181 1)  "Prince  Stetson 
informs  his  friends  and  the  public  that  he  shall  open  his 
Tavern  on  Monda)-  next  in  the  House  of  Col.  Hartlet,  State 
St.,  where  he  solicits  their  faxors." 

Colonel  Steplien  Hartlett's  house  was  on  the  lower,  or 
easterly,  corner  of  Temple  and  State  Streets  ;  and  the  brick 
addition  on  Temple  Street  was  built  about  this  time  to 
accommodate  the  patrons  of  Wolfe  Tavern. 

On  the  corner  of  .State  and  Harris  Streets  was  a  spacious 
brick  house  owned  and  occu])ied  by  Colonel  John  Peaboih'. 
uncle  of  tlie  eminent  banker,  (ieorge  Peabodw  of  London. 
Colonel  Peabod)'  had  built  tliis  liouse  at  great  exi)ense,  and 
resided   there    until,    owing   to   losses   by   the  great    fire   and 


WOLFE    TAVERN  505 

the  g-eneral  stagnation  of  business,  he  decided  to  remove 
to  Georgetown,  D.  C.  Jan.  20,  181 2,  he  gave  a  quitclaim 
deed  of  "  the  land  with  the  buildings  thereon  "  to  Ebenezer 
Wheelwright  and  Thomas  M.  Clark  (Essex  Deeds,  book  195, 
page  168).  Jan.  i,  18 14,  Ebenezer  Wheelwright  and  Thomas 
M.  Clark  sold  the  pi'operty  to  Benjamin  Hale  for  $7,500 
(book  202,  page  290). 

The  alterations  and  additions  rec[uired  to  render  the  estate 
suitable  and  convenient  for  the  entertainment  of  travellers 
were  speedily  provided  for,  and  the  property  was  then  leased 
to  the  proprietor  of  Wolfe  Tavern.  Since  that  date,  not- 
withstanding frequent  changes  in  ownership,  there  has  been 
no  change  in  the  location  of  the  tavern. 

In  the  Registry  of  Deeds  at  Salem  the  following  addi- 
tional conveyances  of  this  estate  are  recorded  :  — 

July  16,  1828,  Benjamin  Hale  to  the  Eastern  Stage  Com- 
pany (book  251,  page  224). 

Eeb.  I,  1838,  Eastern  Stage  Company  to  Simon  P.  Drake 
(book  306,  page  229). 

June  18,  1838,  Simon  P.  Drake  to  the  (3cean  Bank 
(mortgage)   (book  306,  page  230). 

Aug.  31,  1840,  possession  taken  and  title  to  Ocean  Bank 
perfected  (book  321,  page  19). 

March  22,  1844,  Ocean  Bank  to  P^noch  Tilton,  innkeeper, 
for  $7,000  (book  342,  page  264). 

While  the  property  was  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Tilton, 
the  building  was  enlarged  on  the  westerly  side  by  the  addi- 
tion of  a  dining-room,  parlors,  etc.  ;  and  the  brick  dwelling- 
house  adjoining,  then  owned  by  Mr.  Francis  Todd,  was  pur- 
chased, and  connected  with  the  tavern   by  a  ccn-ered  bridge. 

April  15,  1867,  Mr.  Tilton  sold  the  tavern,  with  the  land 
under  the  same,  to  Moses  S.  Little,  retaining  for  his  own  use 
the  dwelling-house  formerly  owned  by  Mr.  Todd  (book  722, 
page  87). 

June  I,  1871,  Moses  S.  Little  sold  the  property  to  Ephraim 
Tebbetts  and  George  Montgomery,  of  Gilmanton,  N.  H. 
(book  829,  page  59). 

P'eb.  19,  1872,  Ephraim  Tebbetts  sold  one-half  the  prop- 
erty to  Dr.  George  Montgomery  (book  848,  page  5). 


5o6  OULD    NEWBURY 

Oct.  7,  1S73,  I)]-.  (ic()r<;c  Montgomery  sold  the  ta\ern 
with  land  undei'  the  same  to  Henr)'  S.  Shattuck,  of  Concord, 
X.  II.   (book  890,  pa^e  223). 

The  will  of  Henry  S.  Shattuck,  i:)ro\ed  in  December,  1883, 
dexised  the  real  estate  above  described  to  his  wife  and  chil- 
di'en. 

July  30,  1887,  Nancy  A.  Shattuck,  widow,  George  H. 
Shattuck,  James  A.  Shattuck,  and  Mary  E.  Shattuck,  single 
woman,  conveyed  the  propert)'  to  l^klward  V.  Shaw  (book 
1203,  page  566). 

Nov.  16,  1 89 1,  Edward  V.  Shaw  sold  the  land  with  the 
buildings  thereon  to  Daniel  H.  Fowle  and  William  Richard 
Johnston,  the  present  owners  and  occu])ants  of  the  tavern 
(book  1327,  page  493). 

After  the  great  fire  in  181 1  Messrs.  Anthon}'  and  Moses 
Da\enport  built  the  stores  now  occupied  by  the  Misses  Wil- 
kinson, Sampson  Levy,  and  C.  W.  Wingate,  on  the  site  of 
the  old  Wolfe  Tavern  at  the  corner  of  State  Street  and 
Threadneedle  alley.  Aug.  18,  1825,  partition  deeds  to  and 
from  Anthony  and  Moses  Davenport  were  recorded  in  book 
238,  pages  263  and  264.  These  deeds  state  that  the  land 
then  occupied  by  the  brick  store  or  stores  "  was  purchased 
b)-  their  honored  father  of  Jonathan  Dole,"  which  statement 
is  corroborated  and  confirmed  by  the  conve)'ances  to  which 
reference  is  made  at  the  beginning  of  this  sketch. 

The  quaint  old  sign  that  hung  on  its  lofty  pedestal  in  front 
of  the  old  tavern  narrowly  escaped  destruction  during  the 
Revolutionary  War.  Public  opinion  denounced  and  con- 
demned everything  that  savored  of  royalty  in  those  patriotic 
days.  Even  the  names  (Jueen  and  King  Streets  were 
changed  to  Market  and  1^'ederal  Streets  in  obedience  to  the 
will  and  wishes  of  the  ]x'op]e.  The  llsscx  Journal,  bold  and 
vigorous  in  its  cominents  on  public  affairs,  declared  in  its 
editorial  columns  that  the  sign  bearing  the  poitrait  of  (ien- 
eral  Wolle,  displa}'ed  in  the  \er}-  centre  of  the  place,  "is  an 
insult  to  the  inhabitants  of  this  truh'  republican  town."' 
l""ortunatel)',  howe\er,  the  \iews  so  vigorously  expressed  were 
not    accei)table    to    the    more    coiiserxatixe   members  of    the 


WOLFE    TAVERX  507 

comnuuiit}-  ;  and  the  obnoxious  sign  was  allowed  tt>  hang  in 
its  accustomed  place  until  long  after  the  close  of  the  war. 

Tradition  asserts  that  the  head  and  bust  of  General  Wolfe, 
surrounded  by  an  elaborate  wreath  of  scroll  work,  were 
carved  upon  the  sign  and  appropriately  painted  and  gilded. 
The  workmanship  was  effective  ;  and  the  head  and  bust,  cut 
in  profile,  were  said  to  bear  a  close  resemblance  to  the  form 
and  features  of  the  distinguished  commander  of  the  English 
forces  at  Quebec.  As  Captain  William  Davenport  was  by 
trade  a  carver,  he  was  full)'  competent  to  do  work  of  this 
kind,  and  probably  exercised  his  own  skill  and  taste  in  the 
production  of  this  unique  sign.  In  the  great  fire  it  w^as  par- 
tiall}-,  if  not  wholl)',  destroyed.  When  Wolfe  Tavern  was 
removed  to  the  corner  of  State  and  Harris  Streets  in  18 14, 
a  new  sign  bearing  the  portrait  of  General  Wolfe,  painted 
by  Moses  Cole,  an  artist  of  some  distinction  at  that  time,  was 
placed  in  front  of  the  house  where  it  has  since  remained, 
with  the  exception  of  a  brief  interxal  when  it  was  withdrawn 
from  public  view,  and  the  name  of  the  hotel  itself  was 
changed  to   "  Merrimac   House." 

In  1887,  the  old  name  was  restored,  and  the  sign  painted 
b}-  Moses  Cole  was  again  hung  in  its  accustomed  place. 
Reno\-ated  and  improved,  the  ancient  tavern  still  furnishes 
entertainment  for  man  and  beast,  and  with  its  interesting 
history  and  associations  connects  the  living  present  with  the 
old  colonial  days. 


THE   FIRST    PRESBYTERIAN    MEETING-HOUSE. 


SejDt.  30.  1740.  Rev.  George  W'hitefielcl  preached  in  New- 
bury for  the  first  time.  He  addres.sed  a  large  audience 
assembled  in  the  Third  Parish  meeting-house,  then  located 
near  the  foot  of  Fish  Street,  in  what  is  now  known  as  Market 
Square.  The  enthusiasm  aroused  by  this  noted  jMcacher 
resulted  in  the  organization  of  a  new  religious  society,  whose 
first  i^lace  of  worship  was  on  the  easterly  side  of  High  Street, 
just  below  the  corner  of  F'ederal  Street. 

Rev.  Matthias  Plant,  then  minister  at  Oueen  ,\nne's 
Chapel,  in  a  letter  to  Kev.  Dr.  Bearcroft,  secretary  of  the 
Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  P'oreign  Lands, 
under  date  of  Feb.  15,  1742-3,  says  :  — 

Since  my  last  of  July  23.  1742.  There  is  erected  a  new  meeting  house 
by  those  People  called  the  new  lights,  and  their  Dissenting  teacher 
received  53  into  Coninumion  in  one  day  of  those  who  were  of  tliat  way 
of  thinking. 

Mr.  Joseph  Adams,  of  Byfield,  a  graduate  of  Har\ard 
College,  was  employed  as  a  stated  preacher  in  the  new  meet- 
ing-house, and  the  number  of  worshippers  steadily  increased. 
On  the  thirt)-first  da)-  of  October,  1743,  thirty-two  male 
members  of  the  Third  Parish  asked  dismission  in  order  that 
they  might  be  gathered  into  a  new  Congregational  church. 
After  a  long  delay  a  meeting  of  the  ])arish  was  held  I-"cb.  14. 
1744,  which  resulted  in  a  x'ote  to  the  following  effect  :  — 

First.  That  the  scijarating  hrctlircn  luul  no  riglit  to  \()tc  in  the  case 
then  pending.  .Secondly.  That  the  reasons  given  by  tlie  brethren  with- 
drawn from  Communion  were  not  sufficient  to  Justify  tlieir  separation 
or  for  this  Cliurch  to  grant  them   a  dismission.      Thirdlv.  That   a   Com- 


THE    FIRST  PRESBYTERIAN  MEETIXC-HOrSE         509 

mittee  be  appointed  to  prepare,  in  the  name  of  the  Church,  an  admoni- 
tion to  the  brethren  of  the  .separation.  Fourthly.  That  if  the  .separate 
brethren  shall  sliijht  the  admonition  which  shall  be  given  them,  to  return 
to  communion,  this  Church  will  in  due  time  proceed  to  such  further 
censure  as  is  directed  in  the  (lOspel. 

Meanwhile  the  disaffected  member.s  of  the  I^'irst  Parish 
church,  after  a  long  and  violent  controversy  with  Rev. 
Christopher  Toppan,  relating  to  their  separation  from  the 
church,  decided  to  call  an  ex  parte  council  of  the  neighboring 
churches  and  ask  for  letters  of  dismissal.  After  several  in- 
effectual attempts  to  carry  this  plan  into  execution,  a  council 
of  eight  churches  was  finally  convened  July  24,  1744.  In 
the  absence  of  Rev.  Christopher  Toppan  and  his  friends, 
who  declined  to  take  part  in  the  council,  all  the  evidence 
presented  was  in  favor  of  the  disaffected  members  of  the 
parish.  As  the  result  of  this  investigation,  the  pastor  of  the 
church  was  censured  ;  and  the  aggrie\'ed  brethren  were  ad- 
vised, in  case  all  proper  efforts  to  obtain  satisfaction  should 
fail,  "  to  seek  more  wholesome  food  for  their  souls,  and  put 
themselves  under  the  care  of  a  shepherd  in  whom  the}'  could 
with  more  reason  confide." 

Dissatisfied  with  these  proceedings.  Rev.  Mr.  Toppan  and 
his  friends  called  another  r.r/^r/Vr  council  (Aug.  31,  1744), 
which  after  due  deliberation  reversed  the  decision  of  the 
previous  council,  and  advised  the  brethren  who  had  with- 
drawn from  the  church  to  renew  their  covenant  vows,  and 
accept  the  ministrations  of  the  faithful  pastor  who  had  served 
them  for  nearly  fift}^  )'ears. 

July  16,  1745,  Rev.  John  Tucker  was  invited  to  assist 
Rev.  Mr.  Toppan  in  the  work  and  ministr)-  of  the  First 
Parish.  He  accepted  the  invitation,  and  was  ordained  Nov. 
20,  1745.  Protesting  strongly  against  the  doctrinal  views 
of  the  new  preacher,  many  members  of  the  parish  united, 
with  some  of  the  personal  friends  of  Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons, 
in  an  effort  to  maintain  religious  worship  in  the  new  meeting- 
house recently  erected  on  High  Street,  near  the  head  of 
P>deral  Street.  A  subscription  paper,  dated  Newbury, 
Nov.  25,  1745,  gives  the  names  of  one  hundred  and  two 
persons  interested  in  this  movement.      It  reads  as  follows  :  — 


5IO 


Ori.D    XEWBCRY 


Upon  the  mature  consideration  of  the  many  Ditticultys  we  iuive  lony 
laboured  under  on  Religious  accounts,  we  look  upon  it.  tor  many  and 
weitjht\-  Reasons,  our  Duty,  &  not  only  so,  but  that  it  would  be  much 
for  our  .Spiritual  advantage  &  edification,  and  for  the  advancement  of 
the  Interest  of  the  Redeemer's  Kingdom  among  us.  to  unite  in  a  Xew 
Society  for  the  Settlement  of  a  (jospel  Ministry  among  us:  and  it  hav- 
ing pleased  (iod  in  his  Providence  to  give  us  an  opportunity  of  Hearing 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Jonathan  Parsons,  whereby  we  have  had  some  tastes  of 
his  Mini.sterial  abilities  and  Qualifications,  from  which  we  can't  but 
think,  if  it  should  please  God  to  incline  him  to  settle  among  us  in  the 
Ministrv.  we  have  a  prospect  opened  to  us  of  obtaining  these  blessed 
Ends,  looking  upon  it  allso  our  Duty  to  provide  an  handsome,  suitable 
support  for  such  a  Ministry.  Upon  the  Rev.  Mr.  Parsons  Accepting 
our  Invitation,  We,  the  Subscribers,  do  hereby  for  ourselves  covenant, 
engage,  &  agree  to  pay  for  the  Support  of  the  said  Rev'd  Mr.  Parsons 
yearly  i.^'  every  year  while  he  continues  in  the  Ministry  among  us.  the 
several  .Sums  which  we  have  herein  subscribed  for.  We  also  covenant 
and  agree  to  pay  towards  his  .Settlement  the  several  sums  which  we 
have  subscribed  for,  as  they  are  set  in  the  following  Lists,  which  are 
both  in  the  Old  Tenor,  as  witness  our  hands  affixed  thereto:  — 


Thomas  Pike, 
Timothy  Toitan, 
MosES  Bradstreet, 
E.vocH  Sawyer, 
Enoch  Titcomb, 
Charles  Peirce, 
Daniel  No  yes, 
Richard  Toppan, 
John  Brown, 
William  Brown, 
Nathaniel  Atkinson, 
Joseph  Atkin.son, 
Edward  Presburv, 
Enoch  Toppan, 
Joseph  Hidden, 
Ebenl/.er  Little, 
Jonathan   Beck, 
Benjamin   Roc.ers, 
Spencer  Bennett, 
Benj.   Moody, 
Stei'hen  Kent, 
Parker  Noyes, 
Enoch  Titcomh,  Jk., 
Joshua  Greenleak, 
John  CiReenleak, 

TlMiirnV    (JREENI.KAI-, 


Benj.  Norton, 
.Samuel  Cresey, 
Jonathan  Greenleak, 
Nehemiah   Wheeler, 
William   Harris, 
Benj.  Pierce, 
Simon  Noyes, 
Samuel  Toitan, 
Samuel  Loni;, 
Moses  Coffin, 
Jonathan  Plumer, 
John  Plu.mer,  Jr., 
Samuel  Harris, 
SiLVANUS  Plumer, 
John  Poor, 
Henry  Tit'-omh, 
John   1!i  krn, 
PiiiLii'  Co\ii:i:s, 
Jacoi;    Knichi', 
Moses  I'eikce, 
Nathaniel  Knai', 

MosKS    Tol.D. 

I'.m;a/i.  \K    Ke\/i.ai<, 
John    I'lsiii'K, 

Zl.niAKI  All     Now  KM,, 
loSKI'H     r.  \NLE\, 


.Samuel  ILvle, 
MosEs  Noyes, 
Daniel  Gooden, 
Nathan   Peabodv,  . 
John  Lowden, 
Ralph  Cross, 
John   Norton, 
JoH.N   Harris, 
Joshua  Comkes, 
Joshua  Greenlkaf.  Jr 
Nathan  Brown, 
Lemuel  Jenkins, 
Niciioi.  \s   PE'rriNCLK, 
Danikl  Wostek, 
Joseph  Couch,  Jr., 

I  )AN1K1.    LUN  T,  Jr., 
John    Hakiu  i. 
Samukl  .SiiAt  kkokh. 
.Vlexandkr   Morrison, 

Hl\K\      Sl-.WALL, 
I'JiMI    \Ii    MoKSK, 
DvNIi.I      KiCllAKliS, 
1)A\III.     Wills. 

S  wir  Ki,   'I'l  Hill. 

Mosi-.S    (  )K|i\\   w, 

D  \N  n  1    S  \ni;okn. 


THK    FIRST   rRKSBYTKRIAX   M  EET/NG  -  HOUSE         511 

RoHKKr  MiTciiEL,  JosKi'ii  Cheney,  Uknj.  Pierce,  Jr., 

r>E.\j.  Frothi.\(;ham,  James  Safkord,  Joseph  Russell, 

George  Goodhue,  Cuttl\g  Pettingle,  Jr.,  James  Mackmillion, 

Joseph  Goodhue,  Henry  Lunt,  Jr.,  Samuel  Peirce, 

Isaac  Johnson,  Cutti.ng  Pettingle,        Benj.  Knkjht, 

Jonathan  Knight,  Samuel  Pettingle,  Bez'd  Knight, 

William  Noyes,  Moses  Pettin(;le,  Rokerp  Cole, 

Daniel  Harris,  Richard  PIale,  John   Pike,  Jr. 

A  true  Copy  from  the  ()riginall.      Taken  this  16"'  of  Dec"''  1745. 

Attest  John    Brown.  Clerk. 

On  the  twentieth  day  of  December,  1745,  the  dLsaffected 
members  in  the  First  Parish  addressed  a  commtinication  to 
the  chmxh,  which  concluded  as  follows  :  — 

Wherefore,  brethren,  on  these  considerations,  for  the  peace  of  our 
consciences,  our  spiritual  edification  and  the  honor  and  interest  of  relig- 
ion as  we  think,  we  do  now  withdraw  Communion  from  you,  and  shall 
look  upon  ourselves  no  longer  subjected  to  your  watch  and  discipline, 
but  shall,  agreeable  to  ye  advice  given  us.  speedily  as  we  may,  seek  us 
a  pastor  who  is  likely  to  feed  us  with  knowledge  and  understanding,  and 
in  whom  we  can  with  more  reason  confide. 

And  now,  brethren,  that  the  God  of  a  full  light  and  truth  would  lead 
both  you  and  us  into  the  knowledge  of  all  truth,  as  it  is  in  Jesus,  is  and 
shall  be  the  desire  and  prayer  of  your  brethren. 

This  communication  was  signed  by  Charles  Pierce  and 
twenty-two  other  prominent  and  influential  men  who  were 
at   that   date  living  within  the  limits  of  the   Parish. 

On  the  third  day  of  January,  1746,  nineteen  persons,  who 
signed  the  above  communication,  affixed  their  names  to  the 
following  covenant  :  — 

We,  the  subscribing  brethren,  who  were  members  of  the  first  church 
in  Newbury,  and  have  thought  it  our  duty  to  withdraw  therefrom,  do 
also  look  upon  it  our  duty  to  enter  into  a  church  estate,  specially  as  we 
apprehend  this  may  be  for  the  glory  of  (iod  and  the  interest  of  the 
Redeemer's  kingdom  as  well  as  for  our  own  mutual  edification  and 
comfort. 

We  do.  therefore,  as  we  trust  in  the  fear  of  Cod,  mutually  covenant 
and  agree  to  walk  together  as  a  church  of  Christ  according  to  the  rules 
and  order  of  the  gospel. 

In  testimony  whereof  we  have  hereunto  set  our  hands  and  seals  this 
third  dav  of  January.  1746. 


512 


OULD    XEWIU-RY 


CiiAKi.i:s    l'ii;KtK 
MosKs   Bradstkket 
Edward   I'kkshurv 
John    Ukoux 
Richard   H ai.i. 
Benjamin    Knujiit 
William   Brown 
Benjamin  Pierce 
Daniel  Noves 
Major   Coodwin 


Thomas    I'iki-: 

Daniel  Wells 

Joseph   Hidden 

Nathaniel  Atkinson.  Junior 

Jonathan    Pia'mmer 

Danii:l  Coodwin 

SlL\ANUS    Plumer 

Saml'el  Hall 

CiTTiNG   Pettin(;ell. 


In  the  month  of  January,  1 746,  they  extended  an  invita- 
tion to  Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons,*  of  Lyme,  Conn.,  to  become 
their  pastor.  Considerable  opposition  was  aroused  by  those 
who  were  unfriendly  to  the  new  church,  and  vigorous  efforts 
were  made  to  prevent  the  installation  of  Mr.  Parsons.  On 
the  19th  of  March,  however,  the  members  of  the  society  as- 
sembled in  the  meeting-house  ;  and  the  pastor-elect  preached  a 
sermon  from  the  text,  "  Steadfast  in  the  faith  "  (i  Peter  v  :  9). 
At  the  close  of  this  discourse  some  letters  and  testimonials 
were  read,  upholding  and  defending  the  theological  views 
and  opinions  of  Rev.  Mr.  Parsons  ;  and  the  question  of  pro- 
ceeding with  his  in.stallation  without  calling  a  council  of  the 
neighboring  churches  was  considered,  and  decided  in  the 
afftrmative  by  the  unanimous  vote  of  those  present.  I'he 
pastor-elect,  standing  with  uplifted  hand,  then  said,  "  In  the 
presence  of  (iod  and  these  witnesses,  I  take  this  people  to 
be  my  people"  ;  and  the  clerk,  rising,  and  speaking  for  the 
church  and  congregation,  said,  "  in  the  presence  of  God  and 
these  witnesses,  we  take  this  man  to  be  our  minister." 

On  the  7th  of  April,  1746,  the  organization  of  this  inde- 
pendent Presbyterian  church  was  comjileted  by  the  election 
of  six  ruling  elders  ;  and  Sept.  15,  1  74S,  the  members  of  the 
society  x'oted,  unanimously,  to  unite  with  the  presb}'tery  of 
Boston,  reserving  to  themsehcs  the  right  to  choose  the  elders 
of  their  church  annually. 

"  Re\ .  Jimatlian  I'arsdiis  was  bom  at  West  Springtield,  Mass.,  Nov.  30,  1705.  He  gradu- 
ated at  Vale  College  in  i7.!v.  i>'id  was  installed  as  pastor  of  tlie  cliurch  in  Lyme,  Conn.,  in  1731. 
In  December  of  that  year  he  married  I'hebe  Ciriswold,  daughter  of  Mr.  John  (Iriswold.  Oct.  2S, 
1715,  lie  removed  from  Lyme  to  Newbury,  Mass. 


THE    FIRST   PRESBYTERIAN  MEETING-HOUSE         513 

March  28,  1746,  thirty-eight  members  of  the  Third  Parish. 
who  had  absented  themselves  from  communion  for  nearly 
three  years,  again  asked  for  letters  of  dismissal  and  recom- 
mendation to  the  new  church.  This  request  was  refused  ; 
and  a  second  petition,  dated  April  6,  1746,  haxing  met  with 
a  similar  fate,  the  dissatisfied  brethren  determined  to  act  on 
their  own  responsibility,  without  waiting  for  the  approval  of  a 
majority  of  the  parish.  On  the  9th  of  June  following  they 
applied  for  admission  into  Rev.  Mr.  Parsons'  church  ;  and  after 
due  deliberation  the  request  was  granted  Oct.  16,  1746. 

The  society  was  encouraged  and  strengthened  by  this  ad- 
dition to  its  membership  ;  but  the  P'irst  Parish,  as  well  as  the 
Third  Parish,  insisted  on  the  right  of  taxation,  regardless  of 
the  fact  that  individual  members  contributed  to  the  support 
of  religious  worship  elsewhere.  A  long  struggle  to  obtain 
release  from  these  exactions  followed. 

Oct.  26,  1 748,  in  a  petition  to  the  General  Court,  Enoch 
Tit  comb  and  Kbenezer  Little  state  that  they  were  appointed 
by  Charles  Peirce,  P^lsq.,  and  others  of  the  town  of  Newbury 
to  present  a  petition  that  they  may  be  freed  from  taxes  to 
the  parishes  to  which  they  now  belong,  and  incorporated  as 
a  distinct  parish.  The  petitioners,  in  conclusion,  say  "  they 
are  able  to  support  one  minister  ;  but,  if  held  to  the  taxes, 
there  is  danger  that  they  will  either  be  obliged  to  attend 
under  a  minister  they  cannot  in  conscience  hear  or  be  de- 
prived of  public  worship.  The}'  ask  that  the  taxes  be  stayed 
until  the  matter  is  decided  "  (Massachusetts  Archives,  volume 
12,  pages  506,  507). 

Nov.  II,  1748,  "A  petition  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  P'irst 
and  Third  parishes  of  Newbury,  who  now  attend  the  ministry 
of  Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons,"  states  that  they  verbally  em- 
powered Enoch  Titcomb  and  Ebenezer  Little  to  petition  the 
General  Court  for  their  being  set  off  from  the  said  parishes, 
and  freed  from  taxes  in  them,  and  pray  that  any  petition 
presented  by  Enoch  Titcomb  and  P2benezer  Little  may  be 
regarded  as  the  act  of  the  subscribers.  The  petition  was 
signed  by  Charles  Peirce  and  one  hundred  and  twenty-two 
others  (Massachusetts  Archives,  volume  12,  pages  513,  515). 


514  OULD   NEWBURY 

In  a  jjctition,  dated  Ne\vbur\-,  Nov.  9,  1748,  Charles  Peirce 
and  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  others,  inhabitants  of  the 
First  and  Third  Parishes,  state  that  they  have  separated 
from  their  respecti\e  societies,  and  have  formed  a  new  society, 
and  settled  a  minister  after  the  manner  of  the  kirk  of  Scot- 
land ;  that  the)'  have  applied  for  dismission  from  their  former 
parishes,  and  have  asked  to  be  freed  from  taxes  there,  but 
have  been  refused  ;  that  the  court  has  also  refused  to  grant 
their  petition  ;  that  they  are  entitled  to  the  indulgence 
granted  (Juakers  and  Anabaptists,  and  desire  to  be  dismissed 
from  their  former  parishes,  released  from  taxes,  and  granted 
parish  powers  and  authority  (Massachusetts  Archives,  volume 
I  2,  pages  508-5  10). 

Nov.  10,  1748,  Governor  Shirley,  in  a  message  to  the 
council  and  house  of  representatives,  says,  with  reference 
to  the  above  petitioners,  "  They  aj^pear  to  be  a  competent 
number  to  support  a  minister,  and  their  leaving  the  old 
parishes  will  not  weaken  them  much  ;  and,  as  I  am  averse  to 
laying  anything  grievous  upon  any  people  because  of  their 
Religious  Sentiments,  I  desire  )'ou  would  once  more  take  it 
(the  petition)  into  consideration"  (Massachusetts  Archives, 
volume  12,  page  512). 

Notwithstanding  this  favorable  recommendation,  the  peti- 
tion was  dismissed  by  the  General  Court. 

June  I,  1749,  another  petition  was  addressed  to  Governor 
Shirley  and  the  General  Court,  signed  by  Charles  Peirce  and 
ninety-three  others,  stating  that  they  had  left  their  former 
parishes  and  formed  a  distinct  society,  and  called  and  settled 
an  Orthodox,  learned  and  pious  minister  ;  that  they  had  ap- 
plied for  dismission  and  exemption  from  taxes  in  said  parishes, 
and  had  been  refused  ;  that  said  parishes  continue  to  tax  and 
imiM'ison  them,  though  well  able  to  sui)i)ort  their  ministers 
without  the  subscribers'  help  ;  that  they  consider  in  matters 
of  conscience  they  should  be  allowed  to  judge  for  themselves 
as  well  as  the  Ouakers,  etc.  ;  and,  as  the)'  have  more  than 
a  thousand  souls  who  attend  their  meeting,  they  ask  that 
their  case  be  considered  (Massachusetts  Archives,  volume 
12,  ])ages  6S0-682). 


THE    FIRST  PRESBYTER  IAN  MEETEYG  -  HOUSE        515 

A  copy  of  the  above  petition  was  sent  to  the  members  of 
the  First  and  Third  parishes,  with  a  notice  that  the  General 
Court  would  give  a  hearing  on  the  subject  on  the  eleventh 
day  of  August.  After  listening  to  the  conflicting  testimony 
presented  by  the  friends  and  opponents  of  the  new  society, 
the  petition  was  dismissed,  and  the  desired  legislation  was 
postponed  until  fifteen  years  later. 

In  1763,  another  effort  was  made  to  secure  relief  from  the 
burden  of  double  taxation.  A  bill  authorizing  the  proprietors 
of  the  Presbyterian  meeting-house  to  levy  a  tax  on  the  owners 
of  pews  was  refused  a  second  reading  in  the  General  Court. 
June  14,  1764,  however,  "An  act  to  impower  the  proprietors 
of  the  meeting  house  in  the  town  of  Newburyport,  where  the 
Reverend  Mr.  Jonathan  Parsons  ofificiates,  to  raise  money  to 
defray  ministerial  and  other  necessary  charges,"  was  passed, 
and  approved  by  the  governor. 

This  act  was  rendered  necessary  by  the  incorporation  of 
the  town  of  Newburyport  in  the  month  of  January,  1764. 
The  meeting-house  where  Rev.  Mr.  Parsons  officiated  was 
within  the  limits  of  the  new  town.  In  order  to  provide  for 
the  changed  conditions  and  to  prevent,  if  possible,  further 
controversy  and  confusion,  the  proprietors  were  authorized 
by  this  act  "to  tax  the  owners  of  pews  in  said  meeting 
house,  whose  polls  or  estates  are  taxed  nowhere  else,  for  the 
support  of  the  public  worship  of  God."  The  act  expired  by 
limitation  in  1767,  but  was  renewed  from  time  to  time  until 
the  year  1 780,  when  the  constitution  of  the  State  was 
adopted. 

Meanwhile  strong  efforts  were  made  by  influential  mem- 
bers of  the  society  to  secure  additional  legislation  ;  and  April 
26,  1770,  "the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Newbuiyport  be- 
longing to  the  several  religious  societies  within  the  limits  of 
said  town  "  were  authorized  and  empowered  by  the  General 
Court  to  raise  money  for  ministerial  and  other  religious  pur- 
poses, and  were  released  from  the  payment  of  "  taxes  and 
charges  for  the  support  of  any  minister  of  any  society  except 
for  the  support  of  the  minister  where  they  usually  attend 
publick  worship."  These  rights  and  privileges,  however, 
were  not  extended  to  the  inhabitants  of  Newbury. 


5i6  OULD   XEWBCRY 

May  24.  1770,  Ik-njamin  l'cttiiii;'cll  and  many  others  peti- 
tioned tlic  town  of  Newbury  for  liberty  to  attend  jjublic 
worship  in  any  j^art  of  Newbury  or  Newburyport,  "where 
they  choose,  .  .  .  and  pay  where  they  attend  and  no  where 
else."  This  request  was  ij,"ranted  b)'  the  town  ;  and  Nathan 
Pierce,  Joshua  Coffin,  and  Samuel  Greenleaf  were  elected  "a 
committee  to  ]:)etition  the  general  court  to  confirm  the  above 
vote  !)}■  a  law  of  the  proxince. " 

At  a  legal  meeting  of  the  freeholders  and  other  inhabitants 
of  Newbury  held  May  23,  1771,  the  above  committee  was 
dismissed  from  further  service.  Five  days  later,  however,  the 
vote  dismissing  the  committee  was  reconsidered  ;  and  Messrs. 
Pierce,  Coffin,  and  Greenleaf  were  "  instructed  to  use  their 
utmost  influence  to  get  said  ^'ote  passed  into  a  law  at  the 
ne.xt  session  of  the  General  Court,  agreeable  to  said  petition, 
which  was  read  in  the  House  of  Representatives  last  session, 
and  put  over  to  the  ne.xt  session  for  further  consideration." 
At  the  same  meeting  a  motion  to  instruct  Joseph  Gerrish, 
E.sq.,  representative  from  Newbury,  to  use  his  influence  to 
secure  the  passage  of  an  act  granting  the  libert}'  asked  for, 
was  submitted,  and  decided  in  the  negative.  Apparently,  no 
further  action  was  taken  by  the  town  or  by  the  General 
Court  in  regard  to  this  matter  for  twenty-five  years. 

When  the  constitution  of  the  State  of  Massachusetts  was 
adopted  in  1780,  the  third  article  of  the  declaration  of  rights 
provided  "that  the  several  towns,  parishes,  precincts,  and 
other  bodies  ix)litic  or  religious  societies  shall  at  all  times 
have  the  e.xclusive  right  of  electing  their  public  teachers  and 
contracting  with  them  foi-  their  support  and  maintenance. 
And  all  moncN's  paid  by  the  subject  to  the  support  of  ]:)ublic 
w^orship,  and  of  the  public  teachers  aforesaid,  shall,  if  he 
require  it,  be  uniformly  a]~)]-)lied  to  the  support  of  the  public 
teacher  or  teachers  of  his  own  religious  sect  or  denomination, 
])ro\idc(l  there  be  any  on  whose  instructions  he  attends. 
Otherwise  it  may  be  paid  toward  the  support  of  the  teacher 
or  teachers  of  the  parish  or  ])recinct  in  which  said  monexs 
are  raised."  This  provision  of  the  constitution  did  not 
relieve  the  members  of  the  l'"iist  I'aiish  in  Newbur\  fiom 
taxation,   neither   did   it    settle   the   question    be)()nd    ilispute. 


THE    FIRST  PRESHYTERJAN  MEETIXG-HOCSE         517 

June  17,  1796,  the  Cieiieral  Court  passed  "An  act  author- 
izing the  First  Parish  in  Newbury  to  discharge  from  taxa- 
tion, for  the  support  of  PubHc  Worship  in  said  Parish,  such 
Persons  within  the  limits  of  said  Parish  as  attend  Public 
Worship  in  any  other  Religious  Society,  and  are  willing  to 
be  subject  to  taxation  in  such  society."  The  preamble  to 
this   act   reads   as  follows  :  — 

"Whereas  a  number  of  persons  within  the  limits  of  the 
P'irst  Parish  in  Newbury,  usually  attending  public  worship 
in  some  of  the  Religious  Societies  in  Newburyport,  were 
heretofore  exempt  from  taxation  in  said  F^irst  Parish,  but 
doubts  have  lately  arisen  as  to  said  exemptions,  therefore  be 
it  enacted,"  etc.,  .  .  .  "the  said  F"irst  Parish  shall  be,  and 
hereby  is,  authorized  to  exempt  from  taxation  all  those  per- 
sons within  the  limits  of  said  parish  "  who  produce  a  certifi- 
cate from  any  incorporated  religious  society  stating  that  they 
are  members  of  that  society,  and  are  willing  to  be  taxed 
therein.  In  1833,  the  third  article  of  the  declaration  of  rights 
was  amended,  and  religious  societies  and  parishes  were  granted 
the  liberties  and  privileges  they  now  enjoy. 

When  Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons  was  invited,  in  January, 
1745-6,  to  take  charge  of  the  society  afterward  known  as 
the  P"irst  Presbyterian  Society  of  Newburyport,  a  meeting- 
house had  been  erected  on  the  easterly  side  of  High  Street, 
near  the  head  of  Federal  Street.  P'eb.  27,  1745-6,  Mr. 
Parsons  bought  of  John  Adams,  son-in-law  of  Benjamin 
Morse,  a  dwelling-house,  with  land  under  and  adjoining  the 
same,  on  the  westerly  side  of  High  Street,  near  the  Blue 
Anchor  Tavern,  where  he  resided  for  more  than  twenty 
years. 

Ralph  Cross,  a  prominent  ship-builder  at  that  time,  deeply 
interested  in  the  organization  of  the  society,  contributed 
liberally  toward  the  cost  of  the  meeting-house,  and  probably 
owned  the  land  upon  which  it  stood.  No  evidence  can  be 
found,  however,  in  the  Essex  registry  of  deeds  to  corrobo- 
rate this  statement. 

In  1756,  a  strong  and  vigorous  effort  was  made  to  provide 
a  larger  and  more  convenient   place  of   worship  for  the  pros- 


5iS  OULD   NEWBURY 

perous  and  growing'  society.  A  committee  was  appointed  to 
select  a  suitable  lot  of  land  for  the  new  meeting-house. 
After  careful  consideration  a  lot  of  land  on  the  corner  of 
I-'ederal  and  School  streets  was  purchased,  and  also  an 
adjoining  lot  on  School  Street.  The  title  to  this  j)roi)erty  is 
described   as  follows:  — 

In  the  di\"ision  of  the  estate  of  Deacon  Joshua  Heck,  in 
1753,  a  lot  of  land  on  the  ct)rner  of  School  and  Federal 
streets  was  assigned  to  Jonathan  Reck.  Sept.  26,  1754, 
Jonathan  Beck  sold  a  portion  of  this  land,  measuring  five 
rods  on  School  Street  and  the  whole  width  on  Federal  Street, 
to  Parker  Noyes  (Essex  Deeds,  book  102,  leaf  131). 

April  12,  1756,  Jonathan  Beck  sold  an  adjoining  lot, 
measuring  three  and  one-half  rods  on  School  Street,  to  Enoch 
Titcomb,  Ralph  Cross,  John  Greenleaf,  Ebenezer  Eittle, 
William  Allen,  Moses  Bradstreet,  James  Jewett,  and  others, 
owners  of  the  pews  in  the  meeting-house  to  be  built  on  said 
lot  (book  142,  leaf  304). 

April  12,  1756,  Parker  Noyes  sold  the  land  ]:)urchased  of 
Jonathan  Beck  Sept.  26,  1754,  "to  the  pewholders  in  the 
meeting  house  in  Newbury  to  be  built  on  said  lot  "  (book 
142,  leaf  304). 

The  timbers  for  the  heavy  oaken  frame  of  the  new  building 
were  promptl}'  provided  and  made  read}'  for  use  ;  and  Jul}'  5, 
1756,  the  act  of  raising  and  securing  them  in  their  proper 
places  began.  On  the  7th  of  July  the  difficult  task  was 
completed  ;  and.  in  commemoration  of  the  event.  Rev.  John 
Morehead,  of  Boston,  a  leading  member  of  the  presbytery, 
preached  a  sermon  from  the  text,  *'And  the  Lord  appeared 
to  Solomon  b\-  night,  and  said  unto  him.  I  have  heard  thy 
prayer,  and  have  chosen  this  place  to  myself  for  a  house  of 
sacrifice"  (2  Chron.  vii  :  12).  (^n  the  fifteenth  da}'  of  Au- 
gust, Re\'.  Jonathan  Parsons  ])reached  in  the  meeting-house 
for  the  first  time,  although  it  was  still  unfinishetl,  and  the 
audience  were  obliged  to  sit  on  rough  benches  tenijiorarih'  pro- 
vided for  that  occasion.  On  the  Kjtli  and  20th  of  the  same 
month  the  old  meeting-house  on  High  Street  was  taken  down. 

Re\'.    A.    (1.    X'ermih'e,    in    a   discourse   delivered    .\o\'.   2.S, 


THE    FIRST  PKESBYTERIAX  M  EETING  -  HOUSE         5^9 

1856,  on  the  one  hnndredth  anniversary  of  the  iMrst  I'resby- 
terian  Church,  gives  the  following  description  of  the  building 
erected  in  1756  :  "  Immense  galleries,  containing  one  hundred 
pews,  besides  free  seats  for  strangers,  covered  three  sides  of 


FIRST    PRESBYTERIAN    MEETING  HOUSE.    BUILT    IN    1756. 

the  building.  Opposite,  on  the  long  side  (East),  was  the 
pulpit  under  which  Whitefield  was  first  buried.  In  the 
pulpit,  at  the  end,  sat  the  sexton.  Immediately  in  front, 
below,  was  the  Elder's  seat,—  a  large,  square  pew,  elevated 
three  or  four  steps,  with  a  table.  Behind,  and  a  little  below 
them,   sat    the    Deacons.      And    over  all  was  the    sounding- 


5 JO  OULD   NEWPURY 

board,  huni;  1)\-  rnds  from  tlic  ccilii^i;.  An  aisle  run  from 
the  ])iili)it.  or  rather  the  deacons'  seat,  to  the  door  opposite; 
and  another  aisle  extended  all  aroimd  the  building,  in  front 
of  the  wall  ])e\\s,  which  were  elevated  two  steps.  One  hun- 
dred and  thirt\--eii;-ht  square  pews  were  ranged  upon  the  floor, 
with  a  chair  in  the  centre.  The  seats  were  hung  on  hinges 
to  be  raised  during  prayer,  and  the  older  people  still  speak 
of  the  noise  they  made  in  falling."  The  steeple  was  not 
erected  until  1759;  and  Samuel  IVttingell,  while  at  work 
upon  it,  on  the  tenth  day  of  September  fell  to  the  ground 
and  was  instantly  killed. 

( )ct.  30,  1765,  Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons,  then  li\ing  in  New- 
bur}',  on  High  Street,  near  the  head  of  Marlborough  Street, 
bought  of  Nathaniel  Carter  fifty-three  rods  and  eighty-five 
feet  of  land  in  Newburyport,  bounded  southwesterly  by  a 
way  thirty-two  feet  wide  (School  Street),  southea.sterly  by 
land  of  Amos  Knight,  northwesterly  by  land  of  Stephen 
Mighill,  and  northeasterly  by  land  of  Ralph  Cross  (P^ssex 
Deeds,  book  122,  leaf  95). 

On  this  lot  of  land  Mr.  l^arsons  built  a  dwelling-house 
which  he  occujiied  with  his  famil)'  for  the  remainder  of  his 
life.* 

*  Attcr  tliL-  dcatli  of  Re\-.  Junatliaii  Parsons,  liii  daugliter,  Phebe  Parsons,  singleuonian, 
sold  her  interest  in  the  house  and  land,  March  23,  179^,  to  liishop  Xorton,  of  Newburyport,  dru.e;- 
gist  (Kssex  Registry  of  Deeds,  book  172,  leaf  267). 

Oct.  15,  1S03.  Jonathan  Parsons  and  Lucy  Parsons,  children  of  Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons,  sold 
their  interest  in  the  property  to  Bishop  Norton,  of  Newburyport  (book  172,  leaf  266). 

.■\ug.  13,  1S17,  William  Hishop  Norton  conveyed  to  Oeorge  Rogers  one  undivided  twentieth 
part  of  land  and  buildings  on  .School  Street,  with  other  property  de\ised  to  him  by  the  will  of  his 
father,  Bishop  NorKm  (book  215,  leaf  i6y). 

Sept.  3.  iJ^3i,  ( ieorge  Rogers  gave  a  quitclaim  deed  to  William  Alexander  "of  land  and 
buildings  on  School  .Street,  Newburyport,  formerly  owned  by  Bishop  Norton,  which  I  bought  of 
William  B.  Norton  Aug.  13,  1817"  (book  263,  leaf  45). 

Dec.  1,  1X30,  Mark  Coffin  sold  to  William  .Alexander  one-eighth  part  of  land  and  liuilding 
described  substantially  as  above  (book  27^",  leaf  115). 

Jan.  30,  1^34,  Jane  P.urns  and  others,  children  and  heirs  of  Bishoj)  Norton,  sold  to  William 
-Alexander  seven-eighths  of  the  above-described  property  (book  277,  leaf  loS). 

Nov.  26,  1838,  William  .Alexander,  by  C.ilman  White,  Deputy  Sheriff,  under  execution,  ctm- 
veyed  to  Hannah  Carr,  of  Newburyport,  widow,  bis  interest  in  this  estate  (book  308,  leaf  170). 

.March  25,  1851,  Hannah  Carr  gave  to  Joseph  K.  Carr,  trustee  for  Hannah  Pearson  Carr,  a 
deed  of  all  her  interest  in  the  above-described  house  and  land  on  .School  Street  (book  566,  leaf  53). 

Hannah  Pearson  Carr,  widow  of  Joseph  K.  Carr,  died  Oct.  13,  i.Syo,  her  husband  ha\ing 
died  in  18S7.  In  her  will,  dated  .April  20,  1877,  and  proved  the  fourth  .Monday  in  November, 
iS()fi,  she  gave  all  her  real  estate  to  her  lnisi)and  during  his  life,  and  the  remainder  in  fee  to  her 
adopted  daughter,  Maria  \- .  Dean,  wife  nl  |i>siph  I'  I  >e.ui,  who  is  ,it  llu-  jiresfnt  lime  owner  of 
the  house  and  land  in  School  Street. 


THE   FIRST  PRESBYTERIAN  MEETING-HOUSE         521 

In  1770,  Rev.  Georg-e  Whitefield  visited  Newburyport,  and 
preached  in  the  meeting-house  on  Federal  Street  September 
10  and  II.  The  Bible  that  he  used  at  these  services  has 
been  carefully  preserved,  and  is  still  used  on  special  occasions. 
After    a    brief  visit   to    Portsmouth   and    Exeter,    N.    H.,    he 


PULPIT    IN    FIRST    PRESBYTERIAN    MEETING-HOUSE. 


returned  to  Newburyport  September  29,  and  died  suddenly 
Sunday  morning,  September  30,  at  the  residence  of  Rev. 
Jonathan  Parsons  on  School  Street.  He  was  buried  in  a 
vault  beneath  the  pulpit  of  the  P'ederal  Street  meeting-house. 
In  the  same  vault  now  rest  the  remains  of  Rev.  Jonathan 
Parsons,  who  died  July  19,  1776,  and  Rev.  Joseph  Prince,  a 
blind  preacher,  who  died  in  Newburyport  Jan.  15,  1791- 


522 


OCLD   iXEWBURV 


The  interior  of  the  iTieetini;"-h()Use  was  ahnost  entirely 
rebuilt  in  1829.  The  lari;e,  square  pews  were  removed,  the 
ceiling  lowered,  and  the  puli:>it  transferred  from  the  north- 
easterly   to    the    southeasterly    side    of    the    building.      New 


X-        f> 


%y 


CENOTAPH    IN    OLD    SOUTH    CHURCH. 


galleries  were  put  in,  a  new  ci'}pt  constructed,  ami  a  cenotaph 
erected  to  the  memor)'  of  Rev.  (ieorge  W'hitefield. 

This  cenotaph  was  designed  by  .Strickland.  The  e.xecution 
of  the  work  was  entrusted  to  a  skilful  marble  worker  in 
Philadelphia,  named  Struthers.  Professor  l'",benezer  Porter, 
I).  1).,  of   Andover  Seminar\.  composed   the   insciiption  ;  ami 


THE   FIRST  PRESBYTERIAN  MEETING-HOUSE         523 

the  cost  of  the  memorial  was  defrayed  by  William  Bartlet, 
Esq.,  of  Newburyport.* 

A  few  years  previous  to  this  date  the  main  bone  of  White- 
field's  right  arm  was  surreptitiously  taken  from  its  place  in 
the  old  vault  by  a  visitor,  and  carried  to  England.  It  came 
into  the  possession  of  a  Mr.  Bolton,  a  strong  friend  and  ad- 
mirer of  Whiteiield,  who  returned  it,  in  September,  1849,  to 
Rev.  Jonathan  E.  Stearns,  then  pastor  of  the  Eederal  Street 
Society,  with  a  letter  disclosing  some  facts  that  established 
its  identity  beyond  question.  It  was  placed,  with  the  other 
remains  of  the  distinguished  preacher,  in  the  newly  con- 
structed vault,  and  is  now  more  carefully  guarded,  in  order 
to  prevent,  if  possible,  the  recurrence  of  similar  depredations. 

In  1856,  extensive  alterations  and  repairs  were  made  on 
the  exterior  of  the  meeting-house,  and  at  the  same  time 
some  needed  improvements  within  the  building  were  made, 
practically  transforming  the  old  edifice  into  a  new  one.  All 
traces  of  ancient  workmanship  and  peculiarities  of  construc- 
tion disappeared,  and  only  the  oak  frame  remained  undis- 
turbed. The  half-tone  print,  however,  on  page  519,  gives  a 
view  of  the  exterior  of  this  structure  as  it  was  before  these 
alterations  were  made. 

The  pastors  of  the  Eederal  Street  Church  have  been  as 
follows  :  — 

Rev.  Jonathan  Parson.s,  installed  March  19,  1746;   died  July  19.  1776. 

Rev.  John  Murray,  installed  June  4.  17S1  ;   died  March  13.  1793. 

Rev.    Daniel   Dana.   D.  D.,  installed   Dec.   19,    1794:   resigned   Nov.   19, 

1820. 
Rev.  .Samuel    Porter   Williams,   installed   Feb.   8,    1821  :   died    Dec.    23, 

1826. 
Rev.    John    Proudfit.    D.  D.,   installed   Oct.  4,    1827:   resigned   Jan.   24, 

Rev.  Jonathan  F.  Stearns,  D.  D.,  installed  Oct.  16.  1835;   resigned   Oct. 

14.  1849. 
Rev.  Ashbel  G.  Vermilye,  installed  May  i,  1850  :   resigned  April  14.  1863. 
Rev.  Richard   H.   Richardson,   installed   April   24.    1864;  resigned   Oct. 

28.  1 868. 
Rev.  Charles  S.  Durfee,  installed  Sept.  8,  1869;   resigned  July  29,  1872. 

*  Belclier's  Biography  of  Whitefield,  page  443. 


524  OULD    XK]VBURY 

Kev.  William  \V.  Newell.  Jr..  installed   May  7.  1.S74:   resigned  June  30. 

1880. 
Kev.  Charles  C.  Wallace,  installed  May  3.  iSSi  :   resigned  Oct.  3.  1888. 
Rev.    Urevard    D.    .Sinclair,    installed    May   i.    1 S89 ;    resigned    Nov.    21. 

.892. 
Kev.  Horace  C.  Hovey.  installed  .May  9.  1893. 

For  additional  information  in  regard  to  the  work  and  in- 
fluence of  this  society  the  reader  is  referred  to  a  discourse 
prepared  and  pul:)lished  in  i  ^26  by  Re\'.  Samuel  1'.  Williams  ; 
to  an  address  at  the  centennial  anniversary  of  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  church  in  1846  by  Rev.  Jonathan  F.  Stearns;  to 
a  sermon,  delivered  after  the  completion  of  the  repairs  on  the 
meeting-house  in  1856,  by  Rev.  Ashbel  G.  \"ermil}-e  ;  and  to 
a  pamphlet,  now  in  course  of  publication,  under  the  su- 
pervision of  Rev.  Horace  C.  Hovey  and  Messrs.  John  W. 
Winder,  Prentiss  H.  Reed,  and  John  1'.  Brown,  containing  a 
full  report  of  the  exercises  at  the  celebration,  April  7  and  8, 
1896,  of  the  one  himdred  and  fiftieth  anniversar)'  of  the 
society. 

Among  the  narrative  and  legendar)-  pt)ems  of  John  G. 
Whittier  is  one  entitled  "The  Preacher,"  which  telJs  of  the 
marvellous  power  and  persuasive  eloquence  of  Whitefield, 

•'  A  homeless  pilgrim  with  dubious  name 
Blown  about  on  the  winds  of  fame, 
Now  as  an  angel  of  blessing  classed. 
And  now  as  a  mad  enthusiast." 

'{"he  closing  lines  of  this  poem  read  as  follows  :  — 

••  L'nder  the  church  of  Federal  Street, 
Under  the  tread  of  its  Sabbath  feet, 
W'alled  about  by  its  basement  stones. 
Lie  the  marvellous  preacher's  bones. 
No  saintly  honors  to  them  are  shown. 
No  sign  nor  miracle  have  they  kncnvn  : 
r>ut  he  who  i)asses  the  ancient  church 
.Stops  in  the  shade  of  its  belfry-porch. 
.And  ponders  the  wonderful  life  nf  him 
Who  lies  at  rest  in  that  charnel  dim. 


THE    FIRST  PKl'.SBYl'KRIAX  MEETIXG-HO[:SK         525 

Long  shall  the  traveller  strain  his  eye 
From  the  railroad  car.  as  it  plunges  by. 
And  the  vanishing  town  behind  him  search 
For  the  slender  spire  of  the  Whitefield  Church. 
And  feel  for  one  moment  the  ghosts  of  trade. 
.And  fashion,  and  folly,  and  pleasure  laid 
By  the  thought  of  that  life  of  pure  intent. 
That  voice  of  warning  yet  eloquent. 
Of  one  on  the  errands  of  angels  sent. 
And  if  where  he  labored  the  flood  of  sin 
Like  a  tide  from  the  harbor-bar  sets  in. 
And  over  a  life  of  time  and  sense 
The  church-spires  lift  their  vain  defence, 
As  if  to  scatter  the  bolts  of  (iod 
With  the  points  of  Calvin's  thunder-rod. — 
Still,  as  the  gem  of  its  civic  crown. 
Precious  beyond  the  world's  renown. 
His  memory  hallows  the  ancient  town." 


REV.  GEORGE  WHITEFIELD. 


At  (jlouccster,  England,  on  the  sixteenth  day  of  December, 
1 714,  George  Whitefield  was  born. 

On  his  second  visit  to  America  he  preached,  Sept.  30. 
1740,  in  the  Third  Parish  meeting-house,  Newbury,  then 
located  in  the  centre  of  what  is  now  known  as  Market  Square, 
and  under  the  pastoral  care  of  Rev.  John  Lowdl.  On  his 
return  from  Hampton,  Portsmouth,  and  York,  he  preached 
again  in  Newbury  Saturday  morning,  Oct.  4,  1740,  to  an 
immense  congregation. 

A  writer  who  was  present  at  services  in  New  York  con- 
ducted by  the  young  and  eloquent  Whitefield,  just  previous 
to  his  visit  to  New  England,  describes  him  as  follows  :  — 

He  is  a  man  of  middle  stature,  of  a  slender  body,  of  a  fair  com- 
plexion, and  of  a  comely  appearance.  He  is  of  a  sprightly,  cheerful 
temper,  and  acts  and  moves  with  great  agility  and  life.  The  endow- 
ments of  his  mind  are  uncommon.  His  wit  is  quick  and  piercing,  his 
imagination  lively  and  florid ;  and,  as  far  as  I  can  discern,  both  are 
under  the  direction  of  a  solid  judgment.  He  has  a  most  ready  memory, 
and.  I  think,  speaks  entirely  without  notes.  He  has  a  clear  and  musical 
voice,  and  a  wonderful  command  of  it.  He  uses  much  gesture,  but  with 
great  propriety.  Every  accent  of  his  voice,  every  motion  of  his  body, 
speaks ;  and  lioth  are  natural  and  unaffected.  If  his  delivery  be  the 
product  of  art.  it  is  certainly  the  perfection  of  it ;  for  it  is  entirely 
concealed. 

The  vast  congregation  that  listened  to  liis  i)reaching  in 
Philadelphia.  niunl)ering  from  hve  to  fifteen  thousand  dailw 
were  drawn  together,  as  if  b}'  magic,  from  all  classes  and 
conditions  of  society.  Benjamin  1^'ranklin,  describing  these 
meetings,  says  :  — 

Mr.  W'liitelield's  elo(|uence  had  a  wonderful  power  over  the  hearts 
and  ]nirses  of  his  hearers,  of  whicli  I  myself  was  an  instance.  ...  1  hap- 


REV.    GEORGE    IVim^EFIELD  527 

pened  soon  after  to  attend  one  of  his  sermons,  in  the  course  of  which  I 
perceived  he  intended  to  tinish  with  a  collection ;  and  I  silently  resolved 
he  should  get  nothing  from  me.  I  had.  in  my  pocket,  a  handful  of 
copper  money,  three  or  four  silver  dollars,  and  live  pistoles  in  gold.  As 
he  proceeded,  I  began  to  soften,  and  concluded  to  give  the  copper : 
another  stroke  of  his  oratory  determined  me  to  give  the  silver  ;  and  he 
finished  so  admirably  that  1  emptied  mv  pocket  whollv  into  the  col- 
lector's dish,  gold  and  all. 

On  his  third  visit  to  America,  Whitefield  came  again  to 
Newbury,  and  preached  to  a  large  congregation  July  29,  1747. 
His  letters  to  friends  in  England  during  his  fourth  visit  to 
America  state  that  he  held  two  services  in  Newbury  Monday, 
Oct.  21,  1754,  and  a  third  service  Tuesday  morning,  October 
22,  and  also  state  that  he  had  made  arrangements  to  preach 
there  the  following  Sunday,  October  2"]. 

In  an  interleaved  almanac,  now  in  the  possession  of  Mrs. 
Alexander  B.  Forbes,  at  Fatherland  Farm,  Rev.  Moses 
Parsons,  who  was  then  settled  at  B)'field,  wrote  under  date 
of  Oct.  28,  1754,  as  follows  :  — 

Monday  Mr.  Whitefield  came,  and  preached  from  Luke  19:  14  (But 
his  citizens  hated  him,  and  sent  a  message  after  him,  saying.  We  will  not 
have  this  man  to  reign  over  us),  dined  here.  Preach"d  at  Rowley  P.  M.. 
Psalm  51:11  (Cast  me  not  away  from  thy  presence,  and  take  not  thy 
Holy  Spirit  from  me),  then  went  to  Ipswich  and  preach'd  at  4  o'clock, 
but  I  did  not  hear  him  there. 

During  W'hitefield's  seventh  and  last  visit  to  America  he 
preached  in  the  First  Presbyterian  meeting-house  Sept.  10 
and  II,  1770.*  He  returned  to  Boston  the  following  day, 
where  he  was  detained  by  illness  for  nearly  two  weeks.  On 
the  23d,  24th,  and  25th  of  September  he  was  at  Portsmouth. 
N.  H.,  and  afterward  visited  Kittery  and  York,  Me.,  returning 
to  Newburyport,  by  the  way  of  Exeter,  N.  H.,  on  the  29th. 

*  111  the  almanac  referred  to  above,.  Rev.  Moses  Parsons  wrote  under  the  date  of  Sept.  10, 
1770,  "  Monday  went  to  Port  to  hear  Mr.  Whitefield :  dined  at  Mr.  Little's  with  him." 

"Tuesday,  September  11,  went  to  (conference)  at  Amesbury.  Mr.  Prime  preached.  Mr. 
Whitefield  preached  at  N.  Port." 

"September  12,  Weiisday  went  to  Rowley  to  hear  Mr.  Whitefield." 

"Thursday,  September  13,  cloudy,  some  rain.  Went  to  Mr.  Chandler's  to  hear  Mr.  White- 
field." 


REi:    GEORGF.     UlI/TEFIELD  529 

He  was  then  quite  ill  antl  almost  exhausted.  After  an 
early  sujjjDer  he  took  a  cantlle,  and  was  hastenini;  to  his 
chamber.  Friends  and  neighbors  had  assembled  in  front  of 
the  parsonage,  and  even  crowded  into  the  hall  to  hear  and 
see  the  wonderful  preacher.  He  paused  on  the  staircase, 
and  began  to  speak  to  them.  Although  breathing  with 
difBculty,  he  continued  to  exhort  them  "  until  the  candle 
which  he  held  in  his  hand  burned  away  and  went  out  in  its 
socket."  At  six  o'clock  the  next  morning,  Sunday,  Sept.  30, 
1770,  the  most  popular  and  powerful  e\'angelist  of  modern 
times  was  dead. 

Funeral  services  were  held  at  three  o'clock  Tuesday  after- 
noon, Oct.  2,  1770,  in  the  First  Presbyterian  meeting-house. 
Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons  preaching  the  funeral  sermon.  The 
pall-bearers  were  Rev.  Samuel  Haven,  D.  D.,  of  Portsmouth, 
Rev.  Jedediah  Jewett,  pastor  of  the  P^irst  Church,  and  Re\'. 
James  Chandler,  pastor  of  the  Second  Church  in  Rowley, 
Rev.  Daniel  Rogers,  of  Exeter,  Rev.  Moses  Parsons,  of  New- 
bury, and  Rev.  Edward  Bass,  D.  D.,  rector  of  St.  Paul's 
Church,  Newburyport.  An  immense  congregation,  gath- 
ered from  towns  near  and  far  remote,  filled  the  meeting- 
house to  its  utmost  capacity.  He  was  buried  in  a  Aault 
beneath  the  pulpit.  The  cenotaph  erected  to  his  memory 
by  William  Bartlet,  Esq.,  in  1829,  bears,  in  addition  to  his 
name,  his  age,  and  other  facts  connected  with  his  busy  life, 
these  words, —  "  No  other  uninspired  man  ever  preached  to 
so  large  assemblies." 

The  house  in  which  Whitefield  died  is  still  standing  on  the 
easterly  side  of  School  Street,  Newburyport,  only  a  few  rods 
distant  from  the  house  where  William  Tlo}'d  Garrison  was 
born.  P^xtensive  alterations  and  repairs  were  made  upon  it 
in  1872.  The  broad  hall  where  the  people  gathered  to  listen, 
and  the  staircase  on  which  Whitefield  stood  the  night  before 
his  death,  have  }ielded  to  the  demands  of  modern  civiliza- 
tion. Two  narrow  halls,  two  modern  stairways,  and  two 
doors  opening  to  the  street  have  taken  the  place  of  the 
former  spacious  entrance.  These,  with  other  changes  made 
at  an  earlier  date,  have  transformed  the  old  parsonage  into 
a  tenement-house  convenient  for  two  families. 


PARKER   RIVER   BRIDGE. 


Soon  after  the  incorporation  of  the  town  of  Newbury  a 
ferry  was  established  for  the  transportation  of  passengers 
across  the  Parker  River  from  Newbury  Neck  to  the  settle- 
ment at  the  Lower  Green.  Oct.  17,  1649,  the  General  Court 
granted  "the  petition  of  Samu  :  Plum"",  ferryman  of  Newbury, 
for  to  ha^  2''  p  passing"",  for  their  transportation "  (Massa- 
chusetts Colony  Records,  volume  2,  page  283). 

Nov.  20,  1650,  the  town  of  Newbury  granted  to  John 
Poore  twenty-two  acres  of  upland  on  the  "  great  neck  "  in 
consequence  of  "his  being  so  remote  from  meeting  and 
difficulty  in  coming  over  the  ferry  and  for  his  satisfaction." 

How  long  Air.  Plummer  remained  in  charge  of  the  ferry  is 
uncertain.  In  the  spring  of  1664  he  asked  for  additional 
compensation  for  his  services;  and  May  18,  1664,  the  Gen- 
eral Court  passed  the  following  order  :  — 

In  ans''  to  tlie  petition  of  Samuel  I'lummer.  ffervman.  of  Xewbery, 
humbly  .shewing  that,  by  a  country  highway  &  bridge,*  set  forth  & 
erected  vp  the  riuer  by  ye  County  Court  of  Ipswich  for  ye  bennefit  of  ye 
country,  his  inheritance  &  trade  is  much  weakened  iS:  endamaged,  & 
huml)ly  desiring  this  Court  to  mak  such  due  reparation  to  him,  in  con- 
sideration thereof,  as  in  their  wisdomes  they  shall  see  meet,  the  Court 
Judgeth  it  meete  to  order  &  enable  the  peticoner  henceforth  to  take  one 
penny  more  than  formerly  for  the  passage  of  each  person.  &  each  beast 
that  he  shall  transport  ouer  that  ferry,  <.^  that  he  is  X:  shall  be  discharged 
of  all  rates  that  are  or  shallbe  made  in  reference  to  the  bridg  &  high- 
way mentioned  in  his  petition,  so  long  as  he  shall  duelv  attend  ye 
ferry. —  Mussdi/iiisef/s  Colony  Rfcords.  volume  4.  Part  ii..  i)age  103. 

In  1734,  an  effort  was  made  to  induce  the  town  of  New- 
biu'y  to  consent    to   the   building  of  a  bridge  o\cr  the  Parker 

*  Sec  skftili  i>l  'rhiirlay's  Ijiidge,  i^age  204. 


PARKER    RIVER    BRIDGE  531 

River  at  or  near  the  place  where  Samuel  Plummer  had  estab- 
lished the  ferry  nearly  a  century  before.  The  following  vote 
was  passed  and  entered  upon  the  records  :  — 

At  a  Legal  meeting  of  ye  Towne  of  Newbury  May  ye  7"'  1734, 
We  do  hereby  .  .  .  grant  liberty  to  have  a  Bridge  built  over  Parker 
River  at  Old  Town  (so  called),  provided  it  may  be  built  &  maintained 
without  being  a  charge  unto  this  Towne  of  Newbury,  and  allso  provided 
that  it  be  made  a  Bridge  for  coaches  and  carts,  etc.,  to  pass  over  upon 
and  There  be  left  convenient  and  sufficient  roome  for  gundelose  loaded 
with  hay  for  to  go  up  or  Downe  Said  River  under  said  Bridge,  allso 
that  all  persons  either  with  coaches,  carts,  etc.,  or  with  fforses,  or  on 
feet,  shall  have  free  liberty  to  pass  &  repas  on  said  Bridge  as  in  any 
Highwayes,  &  allso  provided  that  there  be  a  Bridge  built  as  aforesaid 
within  ten  years  next  ensuing  ye  date  hereof. 

This  read  &  considered,  and  then  put  to  vote  by  the  Moderator;  and 
it  passed  on  y*^  afirmative.  none  discenting. 

The  bridge,  however,  was  not  built  until  nearly  twenty-five 
years  after  the  above  vote  was  passed.  Meanwhile  strong 
and  persistent  efforts  were  made  to  raise  the  money  neces- 
sary to  defray  the  cost  of  the  proposed  structure. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Inhabitants  of  the  Town  of  Newbury,  held  Janu- 
ary ve  18,  1749.  't  was  put  to  vote  whether  the  town  are  willing  there 
should  be  a  Bridge  over  the  river  Parker,  alias  Oldtown  River,  in  this 
Town  at  ye  ferrv  Place,  Provided  it  be  Done  without  any  Charge  to  the 
Town  either  for  the  Building  or  Supporting  the  same,  &  it  passed  on  ye 
affaimative  vote  that  M"^  Daniel  Farnam  prefer  a  Petition  to  ye  General 
Court  for  a  Lottery  to  Build  said  Bridge.  Provided  the  Petition  be 
Preferred  without  Cost  to  the  Town,  this  was  voted  on  ye  affainV*". 

The  General  Court,  Jan.  29,  1750-51,  passed  the  following 
act,  entitled  :  — 

An  act  for  raising  the  sum  of  twelve  hundred  pounds  by  lottery,  for 
building  and  maintaining  a  bridge  over  the  river  Parker,  in  the  town  of 
Newbury,  at  the  place  called  Oldtown  ferry. 

Whereas  the  building  a  bridge  over  the  river  Parker,  in  the  town  of 
Newbury,  in  the  county  of  Essex,  at  the  place  called  Oldtown  Ferry, 
will  be  of  public  service  ;  and  whereas  the  town  of  Newbury  have,  by 
Mr.  Daniel  Farnham,  their  agent,  applied  to  this  court  for  liberty  to 
raise   the   sum   of  twelve  hundred  pounds,   by  lottery,  for  building  and 


532 


OULD   NEWBURY 


maintaining-  a  l)ridi;L'  over  said  river,  at  the  ferry  place  aforesaid,  under 
the  direction  of  persons  to  be  appointed  by  this  government. — 

Be  it  therefore  enacted  hv  tlie  IJeiiteiiant-Governor.  Council,  ami 
House  of  Representatives. 

That  Thomas  Herrv.  John  (ireenlcaf.  Joseph  Gerrish.  and  Joseph 
Atkins.  Kscjuircs.  and  the  said  Daniel  Farnliam.  or  any  three  of  them, 
be  and  hereby  are  allowed  and  impowered  to  set  up  and  carry  on  a 
lotterv.  within  the  said  town  of  Newbury,  amounting  to  such  a  sum  as, 
bv  drawing  ten  per  cent,  out  of  each  prize,  they  may  thereby  raise  the 
sum  of  twelve  hundred  pounds,  to  be  applied,  by  them  or  any  three  of 
them,  towards  building  and  maintaining  a  good  and  sufificient  bridge  at 
the    place   aforesaid,   and   for   defraying   the   necessary   cliarges   of  the 


M^ 


PARKER    RIVER    BRIDGE. 

lottery  aforesaid:  and  that  the  said  Thomas  Berry.  John  (Ireenleaf, 
Joseph  Gerrish,  Joseph  Atkins.  Daniel  Karnham,  or  any  three  of  them, 
be  and  hereby  are  empowered  to  make  all  necessary  rules  for  the  regu- 
lar proceeding  therein,  and  shall  be  sworn  to  the  faithful  discharge  of 
their  trust  aforesaid,  and  be  answerable  to  tlie  purcliasers  and  drawers 
of  the  tickets  for  any  deficiency  or  misconduct :  and  that  the  money  so 
raised  shall  be  applied  to  the  uses  and  purposes  aforesaid  (Acts  and  Re- 
solves of  the  Province  of  Massachusetts  Hay,  volume  3.  page  53'^  )■ 


With  tiic  I'liiuls  raisctl  1)\-  tliis  l(»ttci-\-  tlie  bri(li;c  was  built 
in  the  N'cai'  175S  iiiulcr  the  supeixision  of  Mr.  Ralph  Cro.ss. 
It  was  eii;ht  huiulred  and  se\ent\'  feet  loni;',  twentv-six  feet 
wide,  with  nine  piers  and  ei,i;ht  wooden  arehes. 


PARKER    RIVER    BRIDGE  533 

April  28,  1760,  an  act  proxiding  for  another  lottery  to 
raise  X^6oo  additional  for  defraying  the  charges  already 
incurred  in  building  the  bridge  was  passed  by  the  General 
Court.  The  preamble  to  this  act  states,  on  the  repre- 
sentation of  Daniel  Farnham,  Esq.,  one  of  the  persons  ap- 
pointed to  carry  on  the  lottery,  that  the  bridge  is  nearly 
completed,  that  the  cost  of  the  same  exceeds  the  sum  raised 
by  the  lottery  previously  authorized,  and  that  an  additional 
sum  is  needed  to  complete  the  work.  It  further  states  that, 
inasmuch  as  Thomas  Berry,  one  of  the  persons  named  in  the 
act  passed  by  the  General  Court  Jan.  29,  1750-51,  had  died 
since  the  passage  of  that  act,  and  John  Greenleaf,  Joseph 
Gerrish,  and  Joseph  Atkins,  Esquires,  are  unable,  on  account 
of  age  and  sickness,  to  conduct  the  lottery  and  attend  to  the 
duties  for  which  they  were  appointed,  therefore 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Governor,  Council,  and  House  of  Representa- 
tives, that  Caleb  Cushing,  Esq.,  Joseph  Gerrish,  Jun'r,  Esq.,  William 
Atkins,  Esq.,  and  Mr.  Patrick  Tracer,  merchant,  together  with  the 
aforesaid  Daniel  Farnham,  Esq.,  or  any  three  of  them,  are  hereby  em- 
powered to  set  up  and  carry  on  a  lottery  within  the  town  of  Newbury, 
and  may  thereby  raise  the  sum  of  six  hundred  pounds  for  defraying  the 
charges  already  incurred  in  building  the  bridge,  and  for  the  manage- 
ment and  prosecution  of  the  lotteries,  and  apply  the  residue,  if  any  there 
be,  to  the  maintaining  and  repairing  of  the  bridge,  as  occasion  shall 
require  (Acts  and  Resolves  of  the  Province  of  Massachusetts  Bay, 
volume  4,  page  326). 

In  the  warrant  for  the  annual  meeting  of  the  town  of  New- 
bury, dated  March  2,  1761,  article  fourth  reads  as  follows  :  — 

To  know  wether  the  town  will  take  the  unsold  Ticketts  of  Newbury 
Lottery,  No.  4,  for  Building  &  maintaining  the  bridge  at  Old  Town,  if 
any  should  be  unsold  at  the  time  of  Drawing.  And  what  the  town  will 
do  to  Promote  &  forward  the  drawing  of  said  Lottery. 

The  records  do  not  state  what  action  was  taken  when  this 
article  was  reached  in  the  regular  order  of  business.  Prob- 
ably the  tickets  were  disposed  of  by  persons  directly  inter- 
ested in  the  construction  of  the  bridge  ;  and  the  town,  in  its 


534  OULD   A'KWBURY 

corporate  caj^acit)',  was  not   called  upon  to  render  any  pecun- 
iary assistance. 

April  21,  1 76 1,  the  Lords  of  Trade  in  London  wrote  to 
Governor  Bernard  at  Boston,  New  England,  substantially  as 
follows  :  — 

Between  Fel)iuary  and  April.  1760.  several  laws  were  passed  provid- 
ing for  the  construction  of  ferries,  roads,  &c.,  by  lotteries,  ••  which  is  a 
mode  of  raising  monev  that  in  our  opinion  ought  not  to  be  counte- 
nanced, and  hardlv  to  l)e  admitted  into  practice  upon  the  most  pressing 
exigency  of  the  state,  more  especially  in  the  Colonys.  where  the  forms 
of  Government  may  not  admit  of  those  regulations  and  checks  which 
are  necessarv  to  prevent  fraud  and  abuse  in  a  matter  so  peculiarlv  liable 
to  them."  We  cannot  therefore  but  disapprove  these  laws  upon  gen- 
eral principles:  Init,  when  we  consider  the  unguarded  and  loose  manner 
in  which  they  are  framed,  the  objections  are  so  many  and  so  strong  that 
We  should  have  thought  to  have  laid  them  before  his  Majesty  for  His 
Majesty's  disapprobation  were  we  not  restrained  by  the  consideration 
that  the  purposes  for  which  they  were  passed  having  been  carried  into 
full  execution,  some  inconveniences  might  attend  disannulling  them : 
but  it  is  our  duty  to  desire  that  you  will  not  for  the  future  give  vour 
assent  to  any  laws  of  the  like  nature. 

Notwithstanding  the  objections  urged  by  the  Lords  of 
Trade,  the  General  Court,  Feb.  24,  1763,  passed  "An  act 
for  the  continuation  of  the  lottery  for  raising  a  fiu'ther  sum 
for  maintaining  the  bridge  over  the  River  Parker."  V>\  the 
provisions  of  this  act  the  persons  named  in  the  act  a]v 
provcd  April  28,  1 760,  were  authorized  and  em}:)()wered  to 
continue  the  lottcr)'  under  the  same  regulations  and  restric- 
tions in  oi"(lcr  to  raise  the  sum  of  ^,300  to  defray  the  charges 
incurred  in  the  building  of  the  bridge,  etc.  (Acts  and 
Resolves  of  the  i'l-ovince  of  Massachusetts  l^a\',  xolume  4, 
page  615). 

Subsec|uentl}'  an  act  for  raising  the  sum  of  X3.-OO  b}' 
means  of  a  lotter}',  for  building  a  hall  for  the  students  of 
ilarxard  College  to  dwell  in.  was  passed  In'  the  (ieneral 
Coiu-t,  but  was  not  consented  to  b}-  (iovernor  Bernartl  initil 
he  had  submitted  it  to  the  Lords  of  Trade  and  obtained  their 
consent  to  the  same.  In  their  repl\-  the\-  state  that  "the\' 
are  still    ot    the  opinion   that    lotlei'ies   in  the   American  C'olo- 


PARKER    RIVER    BRIDGE  535 

nies  ought  not  to  be  countenanced,  and  are  fully  convinced 
that  the  too  frequent  practice  of  such  a  mode  of  raising 
money  will  be  introductive  of  great  mischief ;  yet,  in  con- 
sideration of  the  general  propriety  and  utility  of  the  service 
to  be  provided  for  by  the  bill  submitted  for  approval,  we 
have  no  objection  to  your  passing  it  into  a  law,  desiring  at 
the  same  time  that  it  may  be  understood  that  such  a  permis- 
sion shall  not  be  drawn  into  precedent  in  any  other  case 
whatever." 

The  managers  of  the  lottery  having  expended  all  the 
money  that  had  been  raised  for  the  purpose  of  building 
the  bridge  over  the  Parker  River,  it  became  necessary  a  few 
years  later  to  provide  funds  to  meet  the  cost  of  some  needed 
repairs.  The  General  Court  therefore  enacted,  June  30, 
1768,  "  that  a  toll  gate  shall  be  erected  and  a  suitable  person 
appointed  to  receive  fees  from  every  person  who  shall  pass 
over  the  bridge."  The  act  also  fixed  the  rates  of  toll,  author- 
ized the  court  of  general  sessions  for  the  county  of  Mssex 
to  appoint  one  or  more  trustees  to  receive  of  the  keeper  of 
the  bridge  the  money  collected,  and  provided  that  the  bridge 
should  be  "  free  for  all  persons  travelling  to  or  from  the  place 
or  places  of  publick  worship  on  Lord's  Days."  The  powers 
and  privileges  granted  by  this  act  "  continued  in  force  for  ten 
years  and  no  longer  "  (Acts  and  Resolves  of  the  Province  of 
Massachusetts  Bay,  volume  4,  page  1030). 

At  the  July  term  of  the  court  of  general  sessions,  held  at 
Salem  in  1 768,  Jonathan  Poore  was  appointed  toll-gatherer  ; 
and  Daniel  Farnham,  Esq.,  William  Atkins,  Esq.,  and  Cap- 
tain Patrick  Tracy  were  appointed  trustees.  Notwithstand- 
ing the  limitations  and  restrictions  named  in  the  act  above 
referred  to,  the  bridge  remained  under  the  care  and  control 
of  the  court  for  nearly  sixty  years. 

In  1784,  it  was  rebuilt;  and  at  the  December  term,  held 
in  Salem  in  1785,  Moses  Hoyt  gave  bond,  with  sureties,  to 
the  county  treasurer  "  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  his  duties 
as  trustee  of  the  great  bridge  over  Parker  River."  He  evi- 
dently served  as  trustee  for  more  than  ten  years.  In  1796, 
at  the  April  term  of  the  court,  he  rendered  an  account  of  his 


536  OULD    XEIVBUKY 

rcccii)ts  and  expenditures,  from  which  it  a])pear.s  that  the 
rexenue  iVoni  the  bridge  was,  at  that  date,  barely  sufficient  to 
meet  the  annual  expenses. 

Feb.  13,  I79*S.  the  General  Court  passed  "An  act  for 
establishinL;"  a  toll  for  the  i^urpose  of  repairnig  and  maintain- 
ing the  great  bridge  over  the  River  Parker,  in  the  town  of 
Newbury,  and  county  of  Essex."  l^y  the  provisions  of  this 
act  toll  w^as  to  be  collected  from  the  first  day  of  May  to  the 
last  da}'  of  October  in  each  year,  but  no  toll  was  to  be  de- 
manded on  the  Lord's  Day.  The  court  of  general  sessions 
was  authorized  to  appoint  a  suitable  person  to  receive  the 
toll  and  sui)erintend  the  repairing  of  the  bridge.  The  act 
also  provided  "  that  Jonathan  Poor,  Daniel  Hale,  Arnos  Hale, 
Samuel  Plumer,  John  Thurston,  Benjamin  Thurston,  Mark 
Plumer,  David  Plumer,  Stephen  Poor,  and  Simeon  Plummer, 
and  their  families,  or  the  occupants  of  their  estates  contigu- 
ous to  said  Bridge,  and  their  Minister  and  Physician,  be,  and 
hereby  are,  exempted  from  paying  the  toll  required  by  this 
law,  so  long  as  they  shall  keep  in  good  repair,  in  the  judg- 
ment of  the  Trustee  of  said  Bridge,  the  whole  of  the  abut- 
ment of  said  Bridge,  from  the  South  shore  to  the  first  arch, 
including  the  Caps  and  railing." 

In  1827,  extensive  repairs  were  needed  in  order  to  make 
the  bridge  safe  for  travellers ;  and  on  the  third  day  of 
March  of  that  year  the  General  Court  passed  "  an  act  to 
incorporate  certain  persons  for  the  purpose  of  building  or 
repairing  a  Bridge  over  Parker  River,  in  the  town  of  New- 
bury, in  the  County  of  Plssex." 

David  Plummer,  Daniel  Plummer,  Samuel  Newman,  Da\id 
Dole,  Richard  Jaques,  I-'.noch  Plummer,  Jose])h  l-^ndey, 
Samuel  Poor,  John  M.  Plummer,  William  Dole.  Thomas 
Moody,  and  other  persons  associated  with  theni  were  made 
a  corporation,  b)-  this  act,  under  the  name  of  the  Parker 
River  Bridge  Corjjoration.  The  corporation  was  authorized 
to  repair  or  rebuild  the  biitlge,  with  gootl  and  sufficient  ma- 
terials, "  o\er  the  ki\er  Parker  at  a  place  formerly  called 
and  known  by  the  name  of  '  (  )ld  town  fenw' "  The  bridge, 
when  completed,  to  ha\e  not  less   than   six  open  arches,  "one 


JWKKER    R/l'r.K    BRID(;E  537 

ot  said  arches  to  be  at  least  tOrty-five  feet  wide  for  the  con- 
venience and  accommodation  of  the  boating;-  on  said  ri\-er." 
It  was  also  pro\ided  that  the  corporation  should  ha\e  the 
right  to  collect  toll  for  the  full  term  of  fifty  years  ;  "  but  all 
persons  going  to,  or  returning  from,  public  worshi})  or  mili- 
tary duty,"  were  to  be  allowed  to  pass  over  the  bridge  free, 
and  the  General  Court  reserved  to  itself  the  privilege  of 
regulating  the  rate  of  toll  after  the  expiration  of  fifteen 
years. 

Under  this  act  of  incorporation  a  company  was  organized, 
and  a  committee  appointed  to  make  the  necessary  repairs. 
During  the  following  summer  the  work  was  completed  ;  and 
the  bridge,  under  the  supervision  and  control  of  the  Parker 
River  Bridge  Corporation,  was  maintained  as  a  toll-bridge 
until  the  year  1850,  when  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the 
corporation  were  surrendered  to  the  Commonwealth. 

In  1 85 1,  petitions,  signed  by  Daniel  Plummer  and  others, 
in  behalf  of  the  inhabitants  of  Newbur)-,  and  Micajah  Lunt 
and  others,  in  behalf  of  the  proprietors  of  Parker  River 
bridge,  were  presented  to  the  General  Court,  praying  that 
the  county  commissioners  might  be  authorized  to  repair  or 
rebuild  the  bridge  at  the  public  expense. 

In  the  warrant,  calling  a  meeting  of  the  legal  voters  of 
the  town  of  Newbury,  dated  Voh.  i,  1851,  one  of  the  articles 
reads  as  follows  :  — 

To  see  what  action  the  town  will  take  on  an  order  of  notice  from  the 
(jeneral  Court  on  petition  of  Micajah  Lunt  and  Samuel  Poor,  committee 
of  the  proprietors  of  Parker  River  bridge. 

P^eb.  8,  185 1,  the  town,  on  motion  of  J.  Little,  I^sq., 
"  voted  that  the  Hon.  Caleb  Gushing  be  requested  to  prefer 
to  the  Legislature  the  passage  of  a  law  authorizing  the 
County  Commissioners  to  accept  of  toll  bridges,  connecting 
public  roads,  when  siu'rendered  by  the  proprietc^rs  and  of 
public  benefit." 

During  the  severe  storm,  which  occurred  in  the  month  of 
April,  1 85  I,  when  the  light-house  on  Minot's  ledge,  at  the 
entrance  to   Boston  Harbor,  was  destroyed,  the  tide  rose  to  a 


538  OULD   XFJVBCRY 

great  licii;ht  in  I'arkcr  Rixer,  and  three  of  the  wooden  arches 
near  the  centre  of  the  bridge  were  lifted  from  their  founda- 
tions and  floated  some  distance  up  the  stream. 

May  24,  1 85  I,  the  General  Court  passed  an  act  authoriz- 
ing the  count}'  commissioners  ''  to  construct  a  bridge  over 
Parker  river,  in  the  town  of  Xewbur)',  at  or  near  where  the 
Parker  ri\'er  bridge,  so  called,  lately  stood  ;  the  expense  to  be 
assessed  upon  such  parties  as  they  may  have  a  right  to  direct 
to  i^ay  the  same."  In  the  second  section  of  this  act  the 
Commonwealth  relinquished  to  the  County  of  Essex  all 
rights  surrendered,  or  to  be  surrendered  to  it,  by  the 
stockholders  of  the   Parker   Ri\er  bridge. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  legal  voters  of  the  town  of  Newbury, 
held  Aug.  6,  1851,  on  motion  of  Asa  Adams,  "a  committee 
was  chosen  to  oppose  the  building  of  a  bridge  over  the  Parker 
Ri\"er  until  the  town  can  have  a  hearing  before  the  Legisla- 
ture." The  committee  consisted  of  Messrs.  David  S.  Cald- 
well, Daniel  Noyes,  and  Isaac  Adams ;  and  they  were 
authorized  to  employ  counsel,  should  they  deem  it  expedient 
to  do  so. 

This  remonstrance  on  the  part  of  some  of  the  inhabitants 
of  Newbury  delayed  the  work  of  reconstruction  for  several 
months;  but  during  the  summer  and  autumn  of  1853  the 
bridge  was  completed,  and  in  October  of  that  year  the  county 
commissioners  issued  an  order  directing  the  town  of  Newbury 
"  to  pay  the  expense  of  building  the  bridge  o\er  the  river 
Parker  at  old  town." 

In  the  warrant,  signed  by  the  selectmen  of  Newbury 
Dec.  12,  1853,  calling  u])on  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  to 
meet  tor  the  transaction  of  imi)ortant  business,  the  second 
and  third  articles  of  the  warrant  reatl  as  follows:  — 

Article  .Second. —  To  see  if  the  town  will  choo.se  a  Coniniittce  to 
a])i)ear  before  the  Hon.  County  Commi.s.sioner'.s  Court,  to  be  holden  at 
Salem  the  last  Tuesday  of  the  present  month,  to  show  cause  why  thev 
should  not  pay  for  the  construction  of  Oldtow  n  l)ridge,  so  called,  as 
ordered  i)y  the  said  Commissioners.      If  said  committee  be  chosen,  then 

Article  Third, —  To  see  if  tiie  town  will  instruct  said  Committee  to 
relin(|uish  all  riL^ht  or  claim  to  establish  a  toll  on  said  bridije. 


PARKER    RIVER    BRIDGE  539 

At  the  town  meeting  held  Dec.  19,  1853,  "it  was  voted 
that  a  committee  of  three  be  chosen  to  appear  before  the 
County  Commissioners  on  Tuesday,  the  27"'  inst.,"  to  show 
cause  why  the  town  should  not  be  called  upon  to  pay  for 
the  construction  of  the  bridge  over  Parker  River  ;  and  this 
committee,  consisting  of  Captain  Richard  Adams,  Ebenezer 
Little,  and  William  \V.  Perkins,  were  authorized  to  relin- 
quish all   right  to  establish  toll  over  said  bridge. 

At  the  hearing  held  December  27  an  agreement  was 
reached  b}'  which  the  county  assumed  the  entire  cost  of 
rebuilding  the  bridge,  and  the  town  of  Newbury  was  required 
to  pay  all  subsequent  charges  for  repairs.  In  compliance 
with  this  agreement  the  bridge  was  made  free  for  the  accom- 
modation of  the  public,  and  ever  since  that  date  it  has  been 
maintained  and  controlled  by  the  town  of  Newbury. 


COLONEL   MOSES  LITTLE. 


The  house  at  Turkey  Hill  now  owned  and  occujMed  by 
Mr.  John  (Gardner  Little  was  built,  in  1748,  by  Colonel 
Moses  Little,  a  descendant  of  George  Little,  who  settled  in 
Newbury  in  1640.  The  principal  facts  and  incidents  related 
in  the  following  sketch  are  taken  from  the  genealogy  of  the 
family  prepared  by  George  Thomas  Little,  A.  M.,  and  pub- 
lished in  1882. 

The  frequent  transfers  of  land  to  and  from  (George  Little, 
who  was  a  tailor  by  trade,  indicate  that  he  was  also  deeply 
interested  in  agriculture  and  a  large  owner  of  real  estate. 
His  son,  Moses  Little,  born  March  15,  1657,  lived  and  died 
in  the  old  homestead  in  Newbury  not  far  from  "trayneing 
green,"  on  the  road  leading  to  the  mill  on  Little  river.  His 
grandson,  Moses  Little,  born  Feb.  26,  1691,  married,  Feb. 
12,  1 7 16,  Sarah,  daughter  of  Sergeant  Stephen  and  Deborah 
Jaques,  and  lived  in  the  same  place  until  about  the  year 
1730,  when  he  bought,  of  his  uncle  Joseph,  the  Turkey  Hill 
farm  and  removed  his  famil}'  thither. 

Colonel  Moses  Little,  son  of  the  last-named  Moses  Little 
and  Sarah,  his  wife,  was  born  May  8,  1724,  in  the  old  home- 
stead, but  subsequently  lived  with  his  parents,  after  their 
removal,  at  Turkey  Hill.  He  married,  June  5,  1743,  Abigail, 
daughter  of  Joshua  Bailey,  when  he  was  only  nineteen  years 
of  age.  His  wife  was  a  sister  of  General  Jacob  Bailey,  a 
distinguished  officer  of  the  French  and  Revolutionary  wars. 
In  1748,  he  built  a  house  for  his  own  use  a  few  rods  in 
a  northerly  directicm  from  his  father's  residence,  and  there 
lived  until  his  death.  The  house  is  still  standing  ;  and  the 
details  of  its  cost,  in  his  own  handwriting,  have  been  care- 
fully preserved,  and  are  still  in  the  possession  of  his  de- 
scendants. 


542 


OULD    XF.WBURY 


lie  was  for  sc\eral  )'ears  surveyor  of  the  King's  woods, 
and  actiuired  by  t;rant  and  )Hn-chase  large  tracts  of  land  in 
\'ermont  and  New  Hampshire,  and  at  one  time  was  the 
owner  of  the  greater  part  of  what  is  now  Androscoggin 
County  in  the  State  of  Maine. 

Nov.  5,  1767,  his  father  conveyed  to  him,  in  consideration 
of  his  payment  of  various  sums  of  mone}',  amounting"  to 
;^i,300,  to  his  brothers  and  sisters,  one  hundred  acres  of 
land  in  Newbury,  with  the  buildings  thereon;  "also  sixty 
acres  of  land  with  the  buildings  thereon  where  my  said  son 
Moses  now  lives "  ;  also  four  acres  at  Brown's  Garden,  so 
called  ;  and  all  other  lands  and  interests  therein,  where\er 
the  same  may  be,  excepting  five  acres  of  land  in  Bradford, 
bought  of  David  Pearson  (Essex  Deeds,  book  131,  page  222). 

At  the  breaking  out  of  the  War  of  the  Revolution,  Moses 
Little,  Jr.,  was  over  fifty  years  of  age  ;  but,  at  the  first  news 
of  the  battle  of  Lexington,  he  marched  with  a  company  of 
Newbury  men  to  the  headquarters  of  the  army  at  Cambridge. 
He  was  placed  in  command  of  a  regiment  raised  in  the 
northern  part  of  Essex  County. 

"At  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill  he  led  three  of  his  com- 
panies across  Charlestown  Neck,  under  a  severe  fire  from  the 
British  batteries  and  ships-of-war,  reached  the  scene  of  action 
before  the  first  charge  of  the  enemy,  and  was  present  through- 
out the  entire  engagement.  His  men  were  posted  in  differ- 
ent places, —  a  part  at  the  redoubt,  a  part  at  the  breastwork, 
and  some  at  the  rail  fence.  A  fourth  compan)'  came  upon 
the  hill  after  the  battle  began."  In  this  engagement  fort\'  of 
his  regiment  w^ere  killed  or  wounded. 

The  names  of  the  officers  and  pri\ates  who  enlisted  in 
1775  to  ser\e  for  eight  months,  under  Colonel  Moses  Little, 
in  the  company  commanded  by  Captain  Jacob  Gerrish,  are 
as  follows  :  — 


Jacol)  Cicrri.sli.  Capt. 
Silas  Adani.s.  Lieut. 
.'\nio.s  Atkin.son.  Lieut. 
Xatiri  I'carson.  .Sergt. 
Stc'i)lien  I.unt.  Sen^^t. 


Will.  Searl,  Sergt. 
Natiri  .\(lam.s.  Sergt. 
Jacob  Hale.  Corp. 
Win.  Mor<(aridge.  Corp. 
Kli])ha]ct   Kilhurn.  Corp. 


COI.OXEL    MOSES   LITTLE 


543 


Joseph  CaiT,  Corp. 

Benj.  Newman.  Di'inn  &--  Fife. 

John  Kenney,  Pniiii  o-'  Fife. 

Pi  ii 'dies. 
Enoch  Adams. 
Mark  Anthony. 
Edward  Deverisli  Burke, 
John  Burbank. 
Jacob  Chizamore, 
Benj.   Beedle, 
John  Currier. 
Jedediah  Currier. 
William  Currier. 
Benj.  Carr, 
John  Choat. 
Eben  Choat, 
John  Cheney, 
Enoch  Flood, 
Wm.  Flood, 


Daniel   (Joodridge, 
( )liver  ( kiodridge, 
John    Lunt. 
Annis  Merrill. 
Christopher  Merril! 
Richard  Martin. 
Peter  Ordway, 
Mo.ses  Pettengill, 
.Samuel  Place. 
Benj.  Poor. 
Amos  Poor, 
Eliphalet  Poor. 
Joseph  Rogers. 
Richard  Rolfe, 
Moses  Rollins. 
Stephen  Smith, 
John  Sawyer, 
Absalom  Thorla, 
Joshua  Tappan.* 


Colonel  Moses  Little  was  officer  of  the  day  when  Washing- 
ton took  command  of  the  army,  and  snbsequently  became 
personally  acquainted  with  his  commander-in-chief.  "  He 
went  with  the  army  to  New  York  after  the  evacuation  of 
Boston,  and  was  present  at  the  disastrous  battle  of  Long 
Island.  He  held  command  of  Fort  Greene,  near  the  centre 
of  the  American  line,  before  the  engagement,  and  during  it 
was  stationed  at  the  Hatbush  Pass.  He  also  took  part  in 
the  battle  of  Harlem  Heights,  but  did  not  accompany  his 
men  in  the  retreat  through  New  Jersey,  being  detained  by 
sickness  at  Peekskill.  During  the  winter  he  was  in  com- 
mand of  an  important  encampment  at  the  latter  place,  but  in 
the  spring  of  1777  was  forced  to  return  home  on  account  of 
ill-health.  Two  years  later  he  declined  for  the  same  reason 
the  commission  of  brigadier-general  and  the  command  of  an 
expedition  raised  by  the  Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts  to 
dislodge  the  enemy  from  their  position  on  the  Penobscot." 

After  his  return  home  he  was  for  several  years  elected 
representative  to  the   General    Court.      In    1784,  he  lost  to  a 


*  History  of  Essex  County,  iniblished  in  iSS.S,  second  vulunic,  page  1723. 


544  OULD    NEUIWRY 

great  extent  liis  power  of  speech  by  a  stroke  of  paralysis. 
He  liv^ed,  however,  for  many  )'ears,  dying  May  27,  1798. 
The  sword  he  used  at  J-5unker  Hill,  his  commission  from  the 
Continental  Congress,  and  other  mementoes  of  his  long  and 
eventful  life  are  j^reserN'cd  at   Turke)'  Hill. 

His  will,  dated  Sept.  i,  1775,  and  proved  June  4,  1799, 
made  libei"al  bequests  to  his  wife  and  to  each  of  his  daughters. 
To  his  sons,  Josiah  and  Moses  Little,  he  gave  the  farm  in 
Newbury,  with  the  buildings  thereon.  He  also  ga\e  to  his 
son  Moses  about  seven  thousand  acres  of  land  in  Apthorp, 
N.  H.,  and  one-eighth  of  the  Pejepscot  patent  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Androscoggin  River. 

In  the  division  of  the  farm  at  Turkey  Hill  between  Josiah 
and  Moses,  the  latter  came  into  possession  of  one-half  the  up- 
land and  meadow  land,  together  with  the  whole  of  the  house 
built  b)'  Colonel  Moses  Little  in  i74cS.  He  owned  and  occu- 
pied the  house  until  March  18,  1842,  when  he  made  an 
assignment  of  his  property  to  W.  B.  Bannister  and  Josiah 
Little  (Essex  Deeds,  book  331,  page  95). 

March  22,  1842,  W.  B.  Bannister  and  Jo.siah  Little  con- 
veyed the  house  and  land  to  Matthias  P.  Sawyer  (book  348, 
page  122). 

April  II,  1842,  Matthias  P.  Sawyer  gave  a  deed  of  this 
property  to  Josiah  Little  (book  332,  page  11). 

Oct.  2,  i860,  the  executors  of  the  will  of  Josiah  Little 
sold  to  John  Gardner  Little  "all  the  land  with  the  buildings 
thereon,"  particularly  described  in  the  deed  recorded  in  the 
registi-)'  of  deeds,  book  612,  page  221. 

Mr.  John  (iardner  Little,  the  present  owner  of  the  estate, 
is  a  great-grand.son  of  Colonel  Moses  Little. 

The  half-tone  print  on  page  540  gives  a  view  of  the  old 
homestead  as  it  now  is.  Although  nearly  a  century  and  a 
half  old,  there  has  been  no  attempt  in  recent  years  to  change 
its  ap|)earance  outwardh'  or  modernize  it  within. 


PATRICK   TRACY. 


Many  important  facts  and  incidents  connected  witli  the 
early  life  and  parentage  of  Patrick  Tracy  are  unknown.  He 
was  probably  born  in  the  county  of  Wexford,  province  of 
Leinster,  Ireland,  about  the  year  171 1.  When  quite  a  young 
lad,  he  sought  and  obtained  employment  in  a  merchant  ves- 
sel, and.  with  the  consent  of  his  parents,  sailed  from  the 
harbor  of  Wexford  for  New  England.  The  date  of  his 
arrival  in  Newbury  is  uncertain.  For  several  years  he 
followed  the  sea,  and  made  frequent  voyages  to  the  West 
Indies  and  elsewhere.  He  afterward  became  a  competent 
and  skilful  navigator,  and  as  ship-master  and  ship-owner 
acquired  considerable  wealth.  He  subsequently  established 
himself  in  business  as  a  merchant  and  importer  of  foreign 
merchandise. 

He  was  a  vestryman  in  St.  Paul's  Church  from  1743  to 
1 747,  inclusive,  and  a  subscriber  to  a  fund  raised  in  1 743 
for  the  purpose  of  providing  new  pews  for  the  church.  May 
I,  1744,  he  was  assigned  two  pews  (Nos.  35  and  49)  as  his 
proportion  of  the  number  built. 

Dec.  9,  1 749,  he  bought  of  Deacon  Parker  Noyes  about 
fifteen  rods  of  land  with  a  dwelling-house  and  shop  thereon, 
near  the  foot  of  State  Street,  on  the  southwesterly  side  of 
Water  Street,  for  the  sum  of  ^4,800,  including,  also,  the 
privilege  of  a  twelve-foot  way  leading  from  Water  Street  to 
the  land  of  Joseph  Arnold.  The  heirs  of  Samuel  Todd, 
Timothy  and  Richard  Toppan,  Joseph  Arnold,  and  the 
grantor  are  named  as  abutters  (Essex  Deeds,  book  93,  leaf 
195). 

Patrick  Tracy  owned  and  occupied  this  property  at  the 
time  of  his   decease,  but   the   boundaries  had  been  consider- 


PATRICK    TRACY. 


rATRlCK    TRACY  547 

ably  enlarged  by  the  purchase  of  adjoining  land  in  1753  and 
1754.  The  house  and  other  buildings  were  destroyed  by  the 
great  fire  of  181 1.  The  twelve-foot  way  mentioned  in  the 
deed  is  now  known  as  Elbow  alley.  It  extends  from  Water 
Street,  near  its  junction  with  Market  Square,  running  at  first 
in  a  southerly  direction,  then  turning  abruptly  to  the  south- 
west, and  so  continuing  until  it  reaches  Liberty  Street. 

July  8,  1757,  Mr.  Tracy  purchased  the  dwelling-house, 
wharf,  dock,  etc.,  owned  b)^  Colonel  Richard  Kent  at  the 
time  of  his  death.  On  this  wharf,  built  by  Richard  Dole 
in  1678,  Mr.  Tracy  erected  several  large  warehouses  for  the 
storage  of  merchandise. 

In  1 77 1,  he  bought  the  house  and  land  on  Greenleaf's 
lane  previously  owned  and  occupied  by  Rev.  John  Lowell. 
He  removed  the  house  to  Temple  Street,  and  erected  on  the 
site  thus  made  vacant  an  elegant  and  substantial  residence 
for  his  eldest  son,  Nathaniel  Tracy.*  His  only  daughter, 
Hannah,  married  Jonathan  Jackson  in  1772,  and  commenced 
her  married  life  in  the  house  on  High  Street  now  known  as 
the  Dexter  house.  In  1778,  the  adjoining  house,  built  by 
Hon.  John  Lowell,  was  purchased  by  Mr.  Tracy  for  the  use 
of  his  son  John  Tracy. 

A  portrait  of  Patrick  Tracy,  painted  by  an  unknown  artist, 
is  in  the  possession  of  Mrs.  Patrick  Tracy  Jackson,  No. 
383  Beacon  Street,  Boston.  A  photograph  of  this  painting 
hangs  in  the  Public  Library  Building,  Newburyport,  and  has 
been  reproduced  by  the  half-tone  process  for  the  illustration 
of  this  sketch.  The  original  oil  painting  is  of  very  large  size, 
the  canvas  measuring  at  least  five  feet  in  width  and  ten 
feet  in  height.  The  work  is  finely  executed,  and  represents 
Captain  Tracy  standing  erect,  dressed  in  the  costume  of  the 
period.  An  anchor,  on  which  his  left  hand  rests,  with  several 
boxes  and  bales  of  merchandise  in  the  background,  symbolize 
his  career  as  a  sailor  and  as  a  merchant. 

In  commercial  as  well  as  in  mercantile  affairs  Captain 
Tracy  was  eminently  successful,  and  maintained  to  the  close 
of  a  long  life  the  character  of  an  honorable  and  upright  man. 

*  In  1865,  this  house  was  purchased  by  pri\ate  subscription,  and  presented  to  llie  city  of  New- 
buryport for  a  Public  Library  Building. 


548  OULD   NEWBURY 

His  intention  of  man"ia^L;e  to  Hannah  Carter,  of  Hampton, 
N.  H.,  was  recorded  in  Newbury  Dec.  4.  1742  ;  and  Jan.  25, 
1742-3,  he  was  married  by  Rev.  John  Lowell,  of  Newbury. 
His  children  by  this  marriage  were  as  follows  :  — 

Hannah.  l)orn  Oct.  20.  1743:   died  July  2.  1744. 
\Mncent.  born  May  4.  1745:   died  July  7.  1745. 

Hannah  (Carter)  Tracy  died  March  27,  1746,  aged  twenty- 
eight.  Captain  Tracy  married,  for  his  second  wife,  Hannah 
Gookin,  daughter  of  Rev.  Nathaniel  Gookin,  Jr.,  and  Doroth)- 
(Cotton),  of  Hampton,  N.  H..  July  25,  1749.  The  children 
by  this  second  marriage  were  as  follows  :  — 

Nathaniel,  born  Aug.  11.  1751. 
John,  born  April  19,  1753. 
Hannah,  born  April  26,  1755. 

Hannah  (Gookin)  Tracy  died  Aug.  20,  1756,  aged  thirt}-- 
three.  Captain  Tracy  married  March  25,  1773,  for  his  third 
wife,  Mary,  widow  of  Michael  Dalton  and  mother  of  Tristram 
Dalton.  He  had  no  children  by  this  marriage.  He  died 
Feb.  28,  1789,  aged  seventy-eight.  Mary  (Dalton)  Trac)' 
died  Dec.  10,  1791,  aged  seventy-eight.  He  was  buried  in 
St.  Paul's  churchyard.  On  the  monument  erected  to  his 
momor}'  is  the  following  inscription  :  — 

Underneath   are  the  remains  of 

Patrick   Tracw    E.squire. 

Who  departed  this  life 

February  2Sti'  i  789 

Aged  78  years. 

In  various  and  strongly  Contrasted 

Scenes  of  Life 

He  eminently  shone  as  a  man. 

A  citizen  and  a  Christian. 

His  firm  expectation  of  a  future  existence 

Moderated  his  Temper  in  Prosperity 

.SupiKirted  him  in  .\dversitv 

.\nd  enabled  him  to  triumiili  in  Dcatii. 


PA  TRICK    TRACY  549 

His  will,  on  inle  at  the  probate  office  in  Salem,  was  evi- 
dently written  by  Theophilus  Parsons,  who  was  named  as 
executor.  The  will  was  dated  Oct.  i6,  1788,  and  proved 
April  3,  1789.  By  this  will  he  gave  to  his  son  Jonathan 
Jackson  and  wife,  Hannah  (Tracy)  Jackson,  and  their  chil- 
dren "  the  house  where  I  now  live  "  at  the  foot  of  Fish  Street  ; 
to  John  Tracy  and  his  children  "the  house  where  he  (John 
Tracy)  now  lives,  purchased  of  John  Lowell,  P:sq."  ;  and  to 
Nathaniel  Tracy  and  his  children  "  my  brick  dwelling  house 
in  Newburyport  at  present  improved  by  my  son  Jonathan 
Jackson,  with  all  the  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same,  and 
all  the  buildings  thereon,  being  all  my  land  between  Fish 
Street   and   Green.  Street." 

He  also  provided  for  the  support  of  his  "faithful  black 
man  Apropos,"  and  gave  him  "  the  right  to  dwell  with  his 
family  in  the  house  now  standing  upon  my  land  or  field  afore- 
said by  the  burying  place  in  which  he  now  dwells,  and  also  a 
right  during  his  the  said  Apropos'  natural  life  to  improve  the 
garden  adjoining  his  said  dwelling  house,  which  rights,  free 
of  any  rent,  I  hereby  give  and  confirm  to  him,  the  said 
Apropos,  during  his  own  life,  and  no  longer." 

"  And,  further,  I  hereby  enjoin  it  upon  my  children  that 
when  and  so  far  as  the  said  Apropos  is  incapacitated  from 
acquiring  his  subsistence,  and  that  with  comfort,  that  they 
equally  join  in  assisting  him  to  render  his  life  comfortable  ; 
and  this  I  expect  from  my  children  as  they  value  my  injunc- 
tions or  shall  respect  my  memory." 

April  8,  1 79 1,  two  years  after  the  death  of  Patrick  Tracy, 
the  land  upon  which  Apropos  lived,  with  about  eleven  and 
one-half  acres  adjoining,  was  conveyed  by  Thomas  Russell  to 
Theophilus  Parsons,  "  reserving  to  the  said  Apropos  the  right 
to  use  and  occupy  the  said  house  and  about  one-half  acre  of 
land"  (Fssex  Deeds,  book  154,  page  178). 

March  30,  i  792,  Theophilus  Parsons  conveyed  the  above- 
described  property  to  Timothy  Dexter  (book  154,  page  178). 

Dec.  10,  1794,  Timothy  Dexter  sold  to  Anthony  Daven- 
port, merchant,  and  Moses  Davenport,  innholder,  a  certain 
lot  of  land,  situated  in  Newburyport,  bounded  and  described 


550  OULD   NEIVBL'KY 

substantially  as  in  the  above-named  deeds,  "reserving  out 
of  the  described  Premises  to  Appropos  Tracy,  late  servant 
to  Patrick  Tracy,  Esq.,  deceased,  the  use  and  occupation  of 
a  dwelling  house  and  half  an  acre  of  land  under  and  adjoin- 
ing the  same,  situate  at  the  East  corner  of  the  Premises  as 
the  same  is  fenced,  by  the  said  Appropos  during  the  natural 
life  of  the  said  Appropos  "    (book  158,  page  231). 

March  27,  1848,  William  Davenport,  son  of  Anthony 
Davenport,  and  Anthony,  son  of  Moses  Davenport,  sold  to 
the  town  of  Xewburyport  one-half  the  Davenport  pasture, 
so  called,  bounded  on  Low  Street  (now  Pond  Street),  the 
town's  land,  and  land  of  Eastern  Railroad  Company  (book 
395'  P'^S'*^  -09)-  ^^y  t^"^i^  conveyance  the  east  corner  of  the 
pasture  where  ''  Appropos  "  formerly  lived  was  transferred  to 
the  town  of  Newburyport,  and  since  that  date  there  has  been 
no  change  in  the  ownership  of  the  propert}'. 

The  old  homestead,  owned  and  occupied  by  Patrick  Tracy 
at  his  death,  remained  in  the  possession  of  Jonathan  Jackson 
and  his  children  until  Jan.  17,  1805,  when  one-half  of  the 
land  and  buildings  were  sold  to  Mark  Coffin  for  54,500,  and 
the  other  half  to  Joseph  Cutler  for  a  like  sum.  The  deeds 
were  signed  by  Jonathan  Jackson,  Henry  Jackson,  merchant, 
Charles  Jackson,  James  Jacks(Mi,  ph}'sician,  Patrick  Tracy 
Jackson,  merchant,  Harriet  Jackson  and  Mary  Jackson,  sin- 
glewomen,  Erancis  Cabot  Lowell,  merchant,  and  wife  Han- 
nah in  her  right,  and  John  Gardner  and  wife  Sarah  in 
her  right,  all  of  Boston  (Essex  Deeds,  book  177,  leaves  38 
and  70). 

Joseph  Cutler  sold  his  half  of  the  proi^ert)'  to  Richard 
Pike  Oct.  31,  1807  (book  182,  leaf  28)  ;  and,  after  the  death 
of  Mark  Coffin,  Samuel  Bailey  purchased  the  other  half 
(deeds  recorded  book  178,  page  133,  and  book  182,  page  50). 
Nov.  20,  1807,  a  partition  was  made  of  the  land  and  build- 
ings between  the  Iwo  owners  ;  and  that  portion  ui")on  which 
the  house  stood  came  into  the  possession  of  Richard  Pike, 
who  owned  it  when  it  was  de.stroyed  by  the  great  fire  in 
1  8 1  I . 


PUBLIC  LIBRARY   BUILDING. 


After  the  purchase  of  the  Lowell  estate  on  (jreenleaf's 
lane  in  1771,  Patrick  Tracy  erected  on  the  site  of  the  old 
house,  which  he  removed  to  Temple  Street,  an  elegant  brick 
residence  for  his  eldest  son,  Nathaniel  Tracy,  who  married, 
Feb.  28,  1775,  Mary  Lee,  daughter  of  Colonel  Jeremiah  Lee, 
of  Marblehead. 

At  that  date,  Nathaniel  Tracy  was  not  quite  twenty-four 
years  of  age.  He  was  born  Aug.  11,  1751,  and  graduated 
from  Harvard  College  in  1769.  He  took  a  supplementary 
course  of  study  at  Yale,  and  in  1772  commenced  business  in 
partnership  with  Jonathan  Jackson  at  Newburyport.  The 
firm  was  prosperous,  and  for  many  years  engaged  in  mercan- 
tile transactions  of  great  magnitude.  At  the  breaking  out  of 
the  Revolutionary  War,  Nathaniel  Tracy  fitted  out  a  fleet 
of  privateers.  The  first  one  sailed  from  this  port  in  August, 
1775.  During  the  next  eight  years  he  was  the  principal 
owner  of  tw^enty-four  cruising  ships,  carrying  340  guns,  and 
navigated  by  2,800  men.  They  captured  one  hundred  and 
twenty  vessels,  which,  with  their  cargoes,  were  sold  for  nearly 
four  million  dollars  ;  and  with  these  prizes  2,225  ^''"'^''^  were 
taken  prisoners  of  war.  During  the  same  period  Mr.  Tracy 
was  the  principal  owner  of  one  hundred  and  ten  merchant 
vessels  valued,  with  their  cargoes,  at  $2,733,300.  At  the 
close  of  the  war  only  thirteen  were  left,  all  the  rest  having 
been  lost  or  captured  by  the  enemy. 

While  prosperous  and  successful,  Mr.  Tracy  lived  in  mag- 
nificent style.  He  owned  several  houses  in  addition  to  the 
brick  house  on  State  Street.  Among  them  was  the  Spencer- 
Pierce  house  in  Newbury  and  the  old  Craigie  house  in  Cam- 
bridge,  formerly  Washington's    headquarters,    and   afterward 


PUBLIC    L/BRARV    JU'ILD/XG  553 

the  resitlence  of  the  poet  Loni;fello\v.  He  was  liberal  and 
given  to  hosjMtah'ty.  His  eellars  were  stoeked  with  the 
choicest  wines.  His  horses  and  carriai^es  were  the  best  that 
money  could  buy,  and  the  appointments  at  his  table  were  rich 
and  sumptuous.  At  his  home  in  Cambridge  he  entertained 
many  distinguished  guests  ;  and  in  the  brick  house  on  State 
Street,  Newburyport,  he  was  often  honored  with  visitors 
jirominent   in  pubHc  Hfe. 

In  an  article  written  by  Colonel  Samuel  Swett,  .son  of 
I)i-.  John  Barnard  Swett,  and  published  in  the  Nczvbiiryport 
Ihrald  Nov.  23,  1865,  is  the  following  interesting  state- 
ment :  — 

Thomas  Jefferson  was  an  intimate  friend  of  Mr.  Tracy,  and  wrote 
some  poetry  concerning  him.  He  was  a  guest  of  Mr.  Tracy  for  some 
time  at  his  house,  with  his  eldest  daughter  and  a  female  .slave  ;  and  they 
embarked  with  Mr.  Tracy  in  his  ship  -Ceres"  for  England,  where  Mr. 
Jefferson  debarked  and  Mr.  Tracy  sailed  for  Portugal  in  hopes  of  ob- 
taining a  favorable  settlement  of  his  accounts  with  Gardocjui  there,  but 
in  this  he  was  most  wofully  disappointed. 

The  facts  stated  in  the  above  cjuotation  are  corroborated 
by  James  Farton  in  his  Life  of  Thomas  Jefferson.  A  para- 
graph from  the  chapter  entitled  "  Envoy  to  France  "  reads  as 
follows  :  — 

While  Jefferson  was  thinking  of  returning  in  all  haste  to  New  York 
to  catch  the  next  French  packet,  he  heard  of  a  Boston  ship  loading  for 
London  that  would,  it  was  thought,  put  him  ashore  on  the  French  coast. 
It  proved  to  be  the  ship  ••  Ceres,"  belonging  to  Nathaniel  Tracy,  one  of 
the  great  merchants  of  New  England,  who  was  going  in  her  himself, 
and  would  land  the  party  at  Portsmouth,  after  having  passed  the  whole 
voyage  in  pommunicating  commercial  knowledge  to  Mr.  Jefferson. 
Nothing  could  have  been  more  fortunate. 

Parton  adds  that  Jefferson,  in  order  to  obtain  additional  in- 
formation in  regard  to  the  business  affairs  of  New  England, 
"made  an  excursion  along  the  coast  to  Salem,  Newburyport, 
Portsmouth,  towns  beginning  already  to  feel  the  impulse 
towards  the  remoter  commerce  which  was  to  enrich  them." 

Jefferson,  in  his  autobiography,  briefly  alludes  to  this  trip 
to  New  England  in  1784,  and  says  :  — 


554 


or  LP   XEW/WRY 


On  the  71I1  of  Mav  Coni^ress  resolveil  that  a  .Minister  Plenipotentiary 
should  be  appointed  in  addition  to  Mr.  Adams  and  Dr.  Franklin  for 
nesjotiatinii'  treaties  of  commerce  with  forei,ij;n  nations,  and  I  was  elected 
to  that  (lutv.  I  accordinglv  left  .Xnnaijolis  on  the  1  ith.  took  with  me 
mv  eldest  dau,<,diter.  then  at  I'hiladelphia  (the  two  others  being  too 
young  for  the  voyage),  and  proceeded  to  Boston  in  quest  of  a  pa.ssage. 
While  passing  through  the  different  states.  I  made  a  point  of  informing 


NATHANIEL    TRACY. 

myself  of  the  state  of  commerce  in  each  :  went  on  to  New  Hampshire 
with  the  same  view,  and  returned  to  lioston.  Thence  I  sailed  on  the 
5th  of  Julv.  in  the  ■•  Ceres."  a  merchant  ship  of  Mr.  Nathaniel  Tracy, 
bound  to  Cowes.  He  was  himself  a  passenger:  and  after  a  pleasant 
voyage  of  nineteen  davs.  from  land  to  land,  we  arrived  at  Cowes  on 
the  26th. 


.Mr.     Tracx'  I'cinaincd    in    luiiopc   .scxeral  months,  ciulcaxor- 
'\w\i   to   brill!'-  about   a   satisfactor\'  .scttlciiK'nt  of   liis  busincs.s 


/T/w./c  LinR.iRY  nr/i.n/xa  555 

affairs,  hut  at  length  was  compelled  to  return  home,  hroken- 
hearted  and  discourat^'ecl.  Two  years  later,  in  I7<S6,  he  found 
himself  hopelessl)-  in\-o]\ed  in  financial  difficulties,  and  owinj;' 
lar<;"e  sums  of  mone\'  that  he  could  not  pa\'. 

llis  splendid  estates  were  sold  for  a  small  portion  of  their 
walue,  and  lie  retired  from  acti\'e  business  pursuits,  and  with 
his  wife  and  childi'en  lixed  in  comparatix'e  cpiiet  and  seclusion 
for  the  remainder  of  his  da\s  in  the  old  stone  mansion  on 
the  Spencer-Pierce  farm  in  Xewbur)'. 

On  pages  254  and  255  of  Brissot  de  Warville's  "Notes  of 
l^ravel  in  the  United  States,"  written  in  1788,  the  author 
says  :  — 

We  dined  at  Xe\vl)urv  with  Mr.  Tracv.  who  formerly  enjoyed  a  great 
fortune,  and  has  since  been  reduced  by  the  failure  of  different  entei'-^ 
prizes,  particularly  bv  a  contract  to  furnish  masts  for  the  marine  of 
P^rance.  The  miscarriage  of  this  undertaking  was  owing  to  his  having 
employed  agents  in  procuring  the  first  cargo,  who  deceiyed  him  and 
sent  a  parcel  of  refuse  masts  that  were  fit  only  for  fire-wood.  Though 
the  manner  in  which  Mr.  Tracy  had  been  deceived  was  sufficiently 
proved ;  yet,  for  the  clerks  of  the  marine  at  Versailles,  whose  interest 
it  was  to  decry  the  American  timber,  this  fact  was  sufficient  to  enable 
them  to  cause  it  to  be  eyer  after  rejected.  And  Mr.  Tracy's  first  cargo 
was  condemned  and  sold  at  Havre  for  230/.  He  lives  retired:  and, 
\vith  the  consolation  of  his  respectable  wife,  supports  his  misfortunes 
with  dignity  and  firmness. 

Patrick  Trac}',  who  bought  the  land  on  Greenleaf's  lane 
in  1 771,  and  built  the  brick  dwelling"-house  there,  still  held 
the  title  to  the  property  ;  and  at  this  crisis  gave  Jonathan 
Jackson,  his  son-in-law,  permission  to  occupy  a  ])ortion  of  it 
temporarily. 

The  will  of  Patrick  Tracy,  dated  Oct.  16,  1788,  and  proved 
April  3,  1789,  gave  to  Hannah  Tracy,  Patrick  Tracy,  Jere- 
miah Lee  Tracy,  Mary  Tracy,  and  Louisa  Trac)',  "  children 
of  my  son  Nathaniel  Trac)',"  "  my  brick  dwelling-house  in 
Newburyport  at  present  imi:)roved  by  ni)'  son  Jonathan  Jack- 
son, with  all  the  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same,  and  all 
the  buildings  thereon,  being  all  my  land  between  Pish  Street 
and  Green  Street." 

While  residing  in  this  house,  Hon.   Jonathan  Jackson  was 


556  Ori.D    XKWBURY 

aj^pointcd  L'nitcd  States  marshal  for  the  district  of  Massa- 
chusetts ;  and  when  Washini;ton  visited  New  l{ni;land  the 
arrangements  for  his  journey  in  this  State  were  confided  to 
the  care  and  supervision  of  the  marshal.  A  committee  was 
apjiointed  to  receive  the  ]M-esident  upon  his  arrival  in  \ew- 
hur\port,  and  some  of  the  unoccupied  rooms  in  the  Tracy 
house  were  furnished  and  made  ready  for  his  accommodation. 

Washington  was  escorted  by  two  companies  of  caxalry 
from  Ijiswich.  After  crossing  the  bridge  over  the  river 
Parker,  he  proceeded  in  his  carriage  until  the  dividing  line 
between  Newbur}'  and  Newd3ur}'port  was  reached.  There  a 
halt  was  made  and  an  ode  of  welcome,  "He  comes  I  he 
comes!  the  Hero  comes!"  was  sung  by  a  chorus  of  voices. 
Preceded  by  several  companies  of  militia  and  artillery,  he 
was  conducted  past  a  long  line  of  tradesmen,  manufacturers, 
sailors,  children  from  the  public  schools,  the  ^Marine  Society 
and  various  other  associations,  to  the  apartments  that  had 
been  provided  for  him.  An  address  prepared  b}-  John 
Ouincy  Adams,  then  a  student  -  at -law  in  the  ofifice  of 
Theophilus  Parsons,  was  delivered,  to  which  Washington 
replied  in  words  appropriate  to  the  occasion.  A  reception 
in  the  evening  and  a  fine  display  of  fireworks  closed  the 
ceremonies  of  the  day. 

Washington  arrived  in  Newburyport  Friday,  Oct.  30,  1 789, 
about  four  o'clock  p.  m.  He  passed  the  night  in  the  Tracy 
house  and  left  town  Saturday  morning  after  an  earl}"  break- 
fast with  Hon.  Tristram  Dalton.* 

*The  diary  of  Wasliiiigton.  printed  in  1S5S,  contains  tlie  following  account  of  tliis  \isit  to  \lu- 
bur>'port :  — 

Friday,  October  23,  i/Si). 

On  tile  l.ine  between  Worcester  and  Middlesex  I  was  met  by  a  'IVoop  of  light  Horse  belong- 
ing to  latter,  who  Escorted  me  to  Marlborough,  (id  miles)  where  we  dined,  and  thence  to 
Weston  (14  more  where  lodged).  .At  Marlborough  we  met  Mr.  Jonathan  Jackson,  tlie 
Marshall  of  this  State,  who  proposed  to  attend  me  whilst  I  remained  in  it. 

Kriday.  October  jotli  i7Sij. 

At  this  place  (Ipswicli)  1  was  met  l>y  .Mr.  O.tlton  ,ind  some  other  Oentlemen  from  Newbury- 
port; partook  of  a  cold  collation,  and  proceeded  on  to  the  last  mentioned  ]ilace,  where  I  was 
received  with  nnich  respect  and  parade  about  4  o'clock.  In  the  e\ening  there  were  rockets  and  some 
oilier  fireworks,  and  every  other  denioiistratiim  to  welcome  me  to  the  Town.  This  place  is  pleas- 
antly situated  on  Merrimack  River,  and  appears  to  lia\e  carried  on  (here  and  al)o\e)  the  ship  build- 
ing business  to  a  grt.  extent.     'I'he  number  of  souls  is  estimated  at  5<x)(.. 

.■Saturday.  (  ictober  31 -I. 

r.eft  Newbury-port  a  little  after  S  o'clock  (lirst  breakfasting  with  Mr.  Dalton),  and  to  a\(iid  a 
wider  ferr>',  more  nicoineiiieiit  boats,  and  a  piece  of  liea\y  sand,  we  cros.sed  the  Ri\er  at  Salisbui-y, 
two  miles  abo\e,  and  near  that  further  about  —  and  in  three  miles  came  to  the  line  wch  divides 
llie  State  of  Massachusetts  from  that  of  New  Hampshire.  Here  I  took  lea\e  of  Mr.  I  faltoii  .ind 
many  other  private  <  leiitlemen  who  accompanied  nic. 


J'CIUJC    l.inR.lRV    BU/LD/XG  557 

Nathaniel  Trac)'  was  living-  at  this  time  on  the  S])encer- 
Pierce  farm  in  Newbury,  under  a  lease  from  'Hiomas  kussell, 
of  Boston,  "to  Patrick  l^racy  and  his  son  Nathaniel."  Two 
years  after  the  death  of  his  father,  Nathaniel  Tracy  sold  and 
exchanged  the  brick  house  and  land  on  1^'ish  Street  for  the 
old  stone  house  and  farm  where  he  was  then  residing  with 
his  family.  The  deed  making  this  conveyance  is  dated  April 
6,  1 79 1,  and  is  recorded  in  the  registry  of  deeds  at  Salem, 
book    153,   leaf  210. 

It  is  impossible  within  the  limits  of  this  sketch  to  give 
more  than  a  brief  outline  of  the  life  and  character  of  Nathan- 
iel Tracy. 

He  was  the  oldest  son  of  Patrick  and  Hannah  (Gookin) 
Tracy.  He  was  born  Aug.  11,  1751,  and  married  P'eb.  28, 
1775,  by  Rev.  William  Whitwell,  of  Marblehead,  to  Mary 
Lee,  daughter  of  Colonel  Jeremiah  Lee,  a  wealthy  merchant 
of  that  town,  who  owned  and  occupied  an  elegant  house, 
which  was  undoubtedly  at  that  time  the  finest  residence  in 
New  England. 

His  children  by  this  marriage  were  :  — 

Hannah,  born  Jan.  25.  iJjCi:   married  William  Ra\m()nd  Lee. 
Martha  Lee.  born  July  6.  1777:   died  Nov.  10.  177N. 
Patrick,  baptized  by  Rev.  Thomas  Cary  Feb.  27.  i  7S0. 
Nathaniel,  baptized  June  27.  1781  :   died  previous  to  1788. 
Jeremiah  Lee.  baptized  Dec.  21.  1782;   died  Jan.  16.  1S44. 
Alarv.  born  in  Cambridge.  Feb.  25,  1786:   died  Dec.  23.  1809. 
Louisa  Lee.  born  in  Cambridge,  April  25.  1787;   died  May  15.  1869. 
Nathaniel,  born  Nov.  25,  1788. 
Nathaniel,  born  March  18.  1790. 
Martha  Abbv  Lee.  born  Sept.  27,  1791. 
Helen,  born  Jan.  22,  i  79O  :   died  Nov.  10.  1865. 

Nathaniel  Trac}' died  Sept.  19,  i  796,  aged  forty-five.  He 
was  buried  in  the  Old  Hill  bur)ing  ground,  Newburyport, 
near  Pond  Street,  between  Greenleaf  and  Hill  streets!  P^or 
man}'  )'ears  his  grave  remained  unmarked.  Within  the 
memory  of  many  persons  now  living,  a  solid  and  substantial 
tombstone,  inscribed  with  his  name,  age,  and  date  of  death, 
has  been  erected  by  some  of  his  descendants. 


558  OULD   A'EWBURY 

His  wile.  Mary  (Lee)  Tracv.  died  Oct.  31,  18 19,  ai;e(l  66. 
She  was  Iniricd  in  tlic  New  I  Mil  l)Ui-_\iiii;  ^Tound.  (  )nc  son, 
three  dau,i;iitci-s,  and  two  grandchildren  are  interred  in  the 
same  lot.  In  the  immediate  \icinit_\-  are  the  graves  of  Caleb 
dishing,  the   statesman,  and    llannah    V.    (lOnId,  the  poetess. 

Nathaniel  TracN^'s  j^ortrait  hangs  in  the  brick  building  on 
State  Street  where  he  lived  for  man)-  years.  It  has  been 
reproduced  by  the  half-tone  jjrocess  for  this   sketch. 

In  earl\-  life  his  friends  and  associates  found  him  a  ])leas- 
ant  comixuiion,  courteous  in  manner,  and  agreeable  in  con\er- 
sation.  He  was  tall,  robust,  and  comely,  wealthy,  witt\',  and 
patriotic.  He  was  given  to  hospitality,  and  his  generosity 
was  unstinted.  During  the  Rex'olutionary  War  he  contrib- 
uted overs  160, 000  from  his  own  prixate  resources  for  the 
sujiport  of  the  government. 

For  some  years  previous  to  his  death,  he  and  his  famih' 
were  members  of  the  First  Parish  in  Newbury  and  attended 
public  worship  there.  His  widow,  Mary  (Lee)  Tracy,  as 
administratrix,  sold  at  auction  Dec.  11,  1797,  a  pew  in  the 
First  Parish  meeting-house  that  belonged  to  his  estate. 

Thomas  Russell,  who  came  into  })ossession  of  the  Tracy 
House  April  6,  1791,  was  at  that  time  an  eminent  Boston 
merchant.  He  died  in  1796,  at  the  age  of  fift}--si.\.  He  was 
engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits  before  the  War  of  the  Revolu- 
tion. As  early  as  1786,  he  sent  his  first  ship  from  the 
United  States  to  Russia  and  ultimately  developed  a  profitable 
trade  with  that  country.  He  was  a  delegate  from  Boston  in 
the  conxention  held  in  Massachusetts  for  the  adoption  of  the 
Federal  constitution  in  1788;  and  afterward  was  president 
of  the  Boston  C'lKunber  of  Connnerce,  and  also  representatix'c 
to  the  General  Couit  for  sexeral  successi\e  \ears. 

He  was  exadentl}'  a  man  of  wealth,  ready  to  aid  and  assist 
his  friend,  Nathaniel  Tracw  and  full\-  competent  to  deal  with 
the  diniculties  of  the  situalion.  Two  tlaws  after  the  con- 
veyance of  the  Trac)'  house  to  Mi.  Russell,  In  the  deed 
of  exchange  {■)reviousl\'  alluded  to,  a  c|uitclaim  ([k:c([  from 
Thomas  Russell,  undoubtedK-  wiitten  b\'  lohn  Lowell,  l'",s(.|., 
who    toiik    the   acknowledgnu-nt,    con\e\ed    all    Ids    \^'vA^\   and 


JTB/./C    L/liRARY    hT/LD/XG  559 

title  to  iantl  formerl}'  bcloni^ini;"  to  llic  estate  of  Patrick 
Tracy,  "on  State  Street  in  said  Xe\vbur)]i(>it  and  the  build- 
ings thereon  "  to  Timothy  Dexter  (Mssex  Deeds,  book  153, 
leaf  75).  ( )n  the  same  day  Dudley  Atkins  Tyng,  adminis- 
trator, with  the  will  annexed,  of  the  estate  of  Patrick  Tracy, 
gave  a  quitclaim  deed  of  the  same  propert}'  to  Timothy 
Dexter  (book    153,  leaf  76). 

Real  estate  in  Newbury])ort  was  ver}'  much  depreciated  at 
that  time  ;  and,  taking  adxantage  of  this  circumstance,  Dexter 
bought  several  pieces  of  property  that  he  afterward  disposed 
of  at  a  good  profit.  He  retained  possession  of  the  Tracy 
house  until  April  9,  1796.  when  he  sold  it  to  John  Greenleaf, 
and  removed  to  Chester,  X.  H.  (book  159,  leaf  273).  Ac- 
knowledgment of  this  deed  was  made  in  Connecticut,  where 
Nancy  Dexter,  who  married  Abraham  Bishop,  was  then  lixing. 

John  Greenleaf  sold  the  house  and  land.  March  11,  1800, 
to  James  Prince  for  S9,ooo  (book  166,  leaf  220). 

The  property  remained  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Prince  for 
over  thirty  years.  During  a  portion  of  this  time  it  was  occu- 
pied as  a  hotel.  Tht  Xewbinyport  Flcmld  \ox  May  26,  1807, 
contains  the  following  announcement  :  — 

NEWBURYPORT  SUN  HOTEL. 


JACOB  COEURN. 

WITH  deference  informs  his  ftiends  and  the 
public  that  he  has  opened  a  fpacious 
HOTEL  in  flate-ftrect,  Newburyport,  the  for- 
mer  man  lion  of  the  late  Hon.  Nathaniel  Tracy, 
iitq.  and  where  Mr.  J.Hmes  Prince  laft  refided. 

Having  at  confiderable  pains  and  ex- 
penfe  put  the  above  in  a  fituation  fuited  to  ac- 
commodate Gentlemen,  he  aflures  them  with 
confidence  that  they  will  6nd  pvery  convenience, 
and  an  unremitting  attention  to  enfure  the  fa- 
vors of  the  Traveller,  i;^  Good  horfes  and 
carriajres  to  be  had  at  all  hours. 


560  OULD   XIAVBCKY 

Sonic  years  later,  tlie  liouse.  witli  tlie  stable,  garden,  and 
household  furniture,  was  ad\-ertised  for  sale  at  public  auction. 
The  full  and  accurate  description  of  the  propert)'  gixen  in  the 
columns  of  the  Essex  l\Ci![istci\  a  newspaper  published  in 
Salem,  Mass.,  is  interesting;'  and  worthx'  of  preservation.  It 
can  also  be  ciuoted  as  exidence  of  the  fact  that  Mr.  Prince 
lived  in  the  house  Dec.  3,  1814.  The  statement  that  the 
house  was  "built  by  Nathaniel  Tracy"  is  an  error  and  shoukl 
be  made  to  read,  "  built  by  Patrick  Tracy  for  Nathaniel 
Trac}'."  With  this  exception  the  description  is  historicall)' 
correct. 

To  be  sold  at  piihlii    auction  on    Tucsdav  the  zjt/i  of  Dec.  inst.  on 
the  premises. 

IIIA  r  beautiful  situation  on  State  street.  Newburyport.  built  l)v 
X. villi.  Tkacv,  Esq  and  now  occupied  by  the  subscriber,  containing- 
al)out  I  acre  and  1-4  of  Land,  with  an  elegant  garden  laid  out  in 
scjuares  trimmed  witli  Ijo.x.  £~=  which  contains  the  choicest  kind  of  fruit 
trees:  90  bushels  of  .St.  Micliael.  Bergamot.  Oardenelle  and  other 
Pears,  and  about  10  bushels  of  early  summer  Apples.  10  bushels  of 
russett  and  other  winter  Apples  were  raised  in  it  the  present  year  — 
about  30  bushels  of  English  black  and  white  heart  and  mazzard 
Cherries,  and  a  great  variety  of  Plumbs  !^  Peaches  annually  —  the 
nett  income  of  the  garden  the  present  year  is  S200.  The  Mansion 
House  is  54  feet  by  50,  and  slated,  brick  kitchen  30  feet  by  24.  rain 
water  cistern  containing  25  hhds.  and  a  copper  boiler  set  in  brick  which 
contains  2  1-2  barrels,  cellar  under  the  whole  house,  and  a  lower  cellar 
where  tlie  heat  is  nearly  stationary  in  all  weather.  The  Stable  is  "c; 
feet  by  35 — the  wood  iiouse  50  feet  by  23 — the  shed  45  feet  liv  22. 
Also  at  the  same  time  about  500  bbls  old  V'inegar.  and  some  elegant 
Furniture  such  as  2  Wilton  Carpets  72  yards  each,  yellow  damask  bed 
and  window  curtains,  .sophas  and  chairs  covered  with  same.  India  card 
tables,  glass  chandelier,  and  5  elegant  looking  glasses  suitable  for  the 
house. 

Sale  at  i  1  0  clock,  wlien  the  tondit/o/is  lo/ll  />e  made  hnoi-.m. 

JAMl'.S     I'KIXCE. 
Xewi)uryport.  Dec.  3.   1.S14. 

I'()r  some  reason  unknown,  the  sale  of  the  propertx  was 
not  completed;  and  Mr.   Prince  was   still    li\iiiu    in   the   house 


PCBLIC    L/HRARV    h'('/LD/.\c;  561 

when  General  La  h'ayette  and  his  suite  visited  Xewburyjioi-t 
in  the  month  of  August,  1824.  The  same  apartments  tliat 
Washington  occupied  in  1789  were  offered  to  the  commit- 
tee appointed  to  make  arrangements  for  the  reception  of 
La  Fayette,  and  were  promptly  accepted  and  prepared  for 
his  accommodation.  Mr.  Prince  Stetson,  proprietor  of  Wolfe 
tavern,  then  located  on  the  corner  of  State  and  Temple 
streets,  had  charge  of  the  tables  and  i:)rovided  the  meals  for 
the  town's  distinguished  guests.  His  son  Charles,  then  a  lad 
of  thirteen,  acted  as  valct  dc  cJiamhrc  to  the  general.  Among 
the  citizens  who  called  to  pay  their  respects  to  La  Fayette, 
was  an  old  companion  in  arms,  Daniel  Foster,  P^sq.,  who  held 
the  rank  of  sergeant  in  La  Fayette's  select  corps  of  infantry 
during  the  War  of  the  Revolution. 

James  Prince  was  a  son  of  Rev.  Joseph  Prince,*  the  blind 
preacher,  who  was  buried  in  the  vault,  with  Whitefield,  under 
the  pulpit  in  the  First  Presbyterian  meeting-house.  He  was 
an  active  and  energetic  business  man  and  rose  to  affluence 
by  his  own  industry.  He  was  chosen  warden  of  St.  Paul's 
Church  in  1798,  1799.  and  1800,  and  was  a  vestryman  from 
1 801  to  1803,  inclusive,  hi  early  life  he  was  a  zealous  poli- 
tician, and  at  one  time  was  collector  of  customs  at  Newbury- 
port.  He  died  May  1 1,  1830,  in  the  seventy-fifth  year  of  his 
age,  and  was  buried  in  the  New  Hill  burying  ground. 

June  16,  1830,  Sarah  Doane,  wife  of  Samuel  D.  Doane, 
of  Boston,  Ann  L.  Jewett,  wife  of  Nathaniel  Jewett,  of 
Washington  City,  Mary  L.  Prince,  singlewoman,  William  H. 
Prince  and  James  Prince,  heirs  and  devisees  of  James  Prince, 
sold  the  house  and  land  on  State  Street,  Newburyport, 
belonging  to  the  estate  of  the  said  James  Prince,  to  William 
Manning  for  the  sum  of  S5,ooo  (Fssex  Deeds,  book  257, 
leaf  91). 

*Rev.  Joseph  Prince  was  bom  in  Boston  April  12,  1723.  When  only  fourteen  years  of  age  he 
met  with  a  serious  accident  which  impaired  his  sight  and  compelled  him  to  relinquish  his  studies. 
He  married,  July  30,  1747,  Sarah,  daughter  of  Capt.  Ezekiel  Carpenter  of  Attleborough,  Mass. 
He  died  Jan.  15,  1791,  aged  sixty-eight,  leaving  a  widow  and  seven  sons.  Rev.  John  Murray, 
then  pastor  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Society,  Newburyport,  delivered  a  sermon,  Jan.  23,  i7<ji,  com- 
memorating the  life  and  character  of  Rev.  Mr.  Prince,  from  tlie  text,  '•  I  must  work  the  works  of 
him  that  sent  me  while  it  is  dav;  the  night  cometh  when  no  man  can  work."— John  ix. :  4-  This 
sermon  «as  afterward  printed  and  sold  in  Ne%\ burj-port  by  John  Mycall.  publisher  of  the  Netv- 
biiryfort  Herald. 


rriUJC    I./BKARY    BU/LD/XG  563 

Subsequent  conveyances  of  this  i)roperty  are  recorded  as 
follows  :  — 

William  Mannini;  to  Jeremiah  Colman  Se]5t.  4,  1S30  (book 
257,  leaf  201 ). 

Jeremiah  Colman  to  Moses  Colman  one  undivided  hall 
of  the  premises. 

Jeremiah  and  Moses  Colman  to  l^enjamin  Hale  Sept.  15, 
1845  (book  359,  leaf  23). 

Benjamin  Hale  to  Jeremiah  and  Moses  Colman  Sept.  15, 
1845  (book  360,  leaf  166). 

Moses  Colman  and  wife  one  undivided  half  to  William 
Ashby  Nov.  15,  1850  (book  437,  leaf  15). 

William  Ashby  and  Ann  Ashby,  Jeremiah  Colman  and 
Mary  Colman  to  Edward  S.  Mosely,  Joshua  Hale,  and 
Charles  M.  Bayley,  trustees,  April  16,  1864  (book  66"], 
leaf  115). 

Edward  S.  Mosely,  Joshua  Hale,  and  Charles  M.  Bayley, 
trustees,  to  the  mayor  and  aldermen  of  the  city  of  Newbury- 
port  Sept.  22,  1865. 

The  interior  of  the  Tracy  house  was  remodeled  and  fitted 
with  convenient  alcoves  and  book  shelves.  The  library, 
established  in  1854,  was  removed  to  its  new  quarters  and 
reopened  to  the  public  Jan.  i,  1866.  A  new  and  substantial 
addition  was  made  to  the  building  in  1882.  During  that 
year  the  "  Simpson  Annex  "  was  erected,  at  a  cost  exceeding 
S20,ooo,  contributed  mainly  by  Michael  H.  Simpson,  Esq., 
of  Boston.  The  Eree  Reading  Room,  which  owes  its  exist- 
ence to  the  liberality  of  William  C.  Todd,  Esq.,  of  Atkinson, 
N.  H.,  occupies  the  lower  story  of  the  annex,  and  the  upper 
story  is  used  for  the  accommodation  and  enlargement  of  the 
library.  In  appartments  on  the  lower  floor  of  the  main 
building  the  Historical  Society  of  Old  Newbury  have  gath- 
ered a  small  but  interesting  collection  of  books,  manuscripts, 
maps,  and  portraits. 


DEXTER   HOUSE. 


jonatlian  Jackson,  who  built  the  house  on  Hi^h  Street 
now  known  as  the  Dexter  house,  was  born  in  Boston  June  4, 
1743.  He  was  a  Hneal  descendant  of  Edward  and  Frances 
Jackson,  of  Newton,  Mass.  ;  a  great-grandson  of  Jonathan 
Jackson,  of  Boston,  who  cHed  Aug.  28,  1693  ;  a  grandson  of 
Jonathan  Jackson,  of  Boston,  who  was  born  Dec.  28,  1673, 
and  married  Mary  Salter  March  26,  1700;  and  son  oi 
Edward  Jackson,  of  Boston,  who  was  born  Feb.  26,  1707, 
and  married  Doroth)'  Ouincy,  of  Braintree,  Mass. 

While  a  student  at  Harvard  College  Jonathan  Jackson, 
fifth  in  descent  from  Edward  Jackson,  of  Newton,  became 
intimately  acquainted  with  John  Lowell,  son  of  Rev.  John 
Lowell,  of  Newburyport.  They  w'ere  not  classmates,  but 
were  of  the  same  age,  with  congenial  tastes  and  habits. 
Lowell  graduated  in  1760  and  Jackson  in  1761.  The  latter 
came  to  Newburyport,  after  his  graduation,  and  commenced 
his  business  career  as  clerk  in  the  store  of  Captain  Patrick 
Tracy.  "  Vov  several  years  the  two  young  men  li\'ed  to- 
gether as  bachelors,  Lowell  engaged  in  the  jjractice  of  law, 
and  Jackson  in  commercial  pursuits.  They  both  ])rofessed 
to  |)refer  single  to  married  life,  and  avowed  their  intention 
to  continue  permanenth'  in  a  state  of  single  lilessedness. 
But  ultimalel)'  Jackson  was  married  twice  and  Lowell  three 
times." 

Notice  of  the  intended  maniage  of  |onathan  Jackson  to 
Sarah  Barnaid,  of  Salem,  was  recorded  in  Newburx  poit  Nov. 
15,  1766.  The  marriage  ceremon)'  was  performed  at  Salem 
Jan.  3,  1767,  by  Rew  Thomas  Barnard.  She  was  the  daugh- 
ter ol  I\e\.  Thomas  Harnaid  and  Mai\  W'ooilbridge,  his  wife, 
and    was    born    in    .\ewl)ui\-    Jan.    31,     1741    2.       1  L'r    brother 


DEXTKK  norsE  565 

John  was  born  Alarch  21,  1745-6,  and  her  brotlicr  Tlionias 
was  born  Feb.  5,  1748-9.  Her  father  was  minister  of  the 
Second  Church  in  Newbury  from  1739  to  i75i,andof  the 
First  Church  in  Salem  from  1755  to  1773.  She  died  at 
Newburyport  June  22,  1770,  in  the  twenty-ei(;hth  year  of  her 
age.  There  were  no  children  by  this  marriage.  In  1772, 
Jonathan  Jackson  married  Hannah  Tracy,  daughter  of  Cap- 
tain Patrick  Tracy.      They  had  children  as  follows  :  — 

Robert,  born  March  4.  1773:   died  in  iSoo. 

Henry,  born  Jan.  12,  1774:   died  in  1806. 

Charles,  born  May  31,  1775:  justice  of  the  supreme  court  of  Massa- 
chusetts. 

Hannah,  born  July  -■  ^ll^^'-  married  Francis  Cabot  Lowell,  son  of  Jud<i;e 
Lowell. 

James,  born  Oct.  2.  1777  :   an  eminent  physician  in  Boston. 

Sarah,  born  June  26,  1779;   married  John  S.  Gardner. 

Patrick  Tracy,  born  Aug.  14,  i  7S0  ;   a  distinguished  Boston  merchant. 

Harriet.  Ijorn  Jan.  2,  1782. 

Mary,  born  in  October,  1783  ;   married  Henry  Lee  of  Boston. 

Jonathan  Jackson  and  his  friend  John  Lowell  bought  of 
Elizabeth  Stickney,  widow  of  Joseph  Stickney,  March  23, 
1 77 1,  about  five  acres  of  land  on  High  Street  ;  and  on  one- 
half  this  land  Jonathan  Jackson  built  the  house,  now  known 
as  the  Dexter  house,  just  previous  to  his  marriage  to  Hannah 
Tracy. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  Revolutionary  War,  he  was  a 
member  of  the  Committee  of  Public  Safety,  also  a  member 
of  the  Provincial  Congress  at  Watertown  ;  and  afterward,  in 
1 78 1  and  1782,  a  member  of  the  Continental  Congress.  He 
was  a  zealous  advocate  of  civil  liberty  and  a  strong  supporter 
of  the  policy  of  Washington  and  Hamilton.  He  was  an 
abolitionist  before  emancipation  was  decreed  in  Massachu- 
setts. One  of  his  slaves,  manumitted  before  the  Revolution, 
served  in  the  Continental  Army,  and  afterward  lived  in 
Newburyport   until   his   death   in    1822. 

Jonathan  Jackson  began  life  with  at  least  tw^enty  thousand 
guineas,  inherited  from  his  father's  estate  ;  but  the  misfor- 
tunes of  the   war  reduced   his   property  very  materially.      In 


566 


OUI.D    NEWBURY 


Ma\'.  1785,  1k'  rcniox-cd  his  faniil\-  to  l^oston  and  started  a 
commission  business  tlicic  with  Stc|)hcn  Migginson,  under 
the  firm  name  of  Jackson  &  I  ligginson.  In  1786,  when  the 
insurrection  occurred  in  ^lassacliusetts,  he  was  one  of  the 
militar\'  corps,  wlio  went  to  tlie  su]:)port  of  public  order  and 
served  under  the  command  of  General  Lincoln.  His  efforts 
to  establish  a  lucrative  business  in    Boston  were  unsuccessful, 


JONATHAN    JACKSON. 


and  he  letui-ned   to    Xewbur}port   after   an    absence  of  a  )'ear 
or  two. 

lie  was  LMiited  States  marshal  for  the  district  of  Mas- 
sachusetts when  Washington  began  liis  tour  through  the 
ICastern  States,  and  was  temporarih'  occup\ing  one-half  of 
the  house  now  known  as  the  I'ublic  I,ibrai"\'  building.  The 
will    ot    Patrick    TracN',   admitted    to    jirobate    a     few    months 


j:)/-:x7'/:A'   iioi'SE 


S^7 


previously,  <j;a\c  the  house  and  land  to  the  children  ot 
Nathaniel  Tracy,  who  were  residini;-  at  that  time  in  the 
Spencer- Pierce  house  in  Newbury.  Under  the  direction  of 
Jonathan  Jackson,  the  vacant  apartments  in  the  'I'racy  house 
were  fitted  up  for  the  reception  of  the  ])resident  ;  and  there 
he  received,  during  the  afternoon  and  evening,  calls  from 
many  of  the  prominent  citizens  of  that  day. 


HANNAH    (TRACYi    JACKSON. 


In  1790,  Jonathan  Jackson  was  appointed  one  of  the  com- 
missioners to  take  the  census,  and  in  1791  he  w^as  appointed 
inspector  of  internal  revenue.  He  was  elected  vestryman  of 
St.  Paul's  Church  at  the  P:aster  meeting  in  1794,  and  also 
in  1795.  May  27,  1795,  he  sold  his  house  on  High  Street 
to  Captain  Thomas  Thomas  and  again  removed,  with  his 
family,  to  Bo.ston.      In  1796,  he  was  appointed  supervisor  of 


568  OULD   XF.WBUKY 

the  rcxcnue  for  the  District  of  Massachusetts  to  take  the 
place  of   Hon.  Nathaniel  (Gordon,  deceased. 

His  wife,  Hannah  (Tracy)  Jackson,  died  in  Boston  April 
28,  1797.  He  retained  the  office  of  supervisor  for  several 
years,  and  was  then  elected  treasurer  of  the  Commonwealth 
for  five  years.  At  the  time  of  his  death,  in  March,  1810,  he 
was  treasurer  of  Harvard  College,  and  also  president  of  a 
large  and   im])()rtant    Boston   bank. 

An  interesting  sketch,  written  b}'  his  son.  Dr.  James  Jack- 
son, and  printed  in  1866  for  private  distribution,  is  in  the 
Xewburyport  Public  Library.  The  pamphlet  gives,  in  addi- 
tion to  the  facts  already  stated,  other  incidents  connected 
with  the  later  life  of  Jonathan  Jackson. 

The  original  portraits,  by  Copley,  mentioned  in  the  pam- 
phlet are  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  James  Jackson,  I^^iir- 
field  Street,  Boston  ;  and  the  photographic  copies,  presented 
to  the  directors  of  the  Public  Library,  have  been  reproduced 
by  the  half-tone  process  for  the  illustration  of  this  sketch. 
Dr.  Jackson,  in  afoot-note  to  his  pamphlet,  says:  — 

The  portrait  1  have  mentioned  is  a  photograph  taken  bv  J.  A. 
Whipple  of  IJoston.  in  this  month. —  November.  1865. —  from  a  paint- 
ing by  the  distinguished  Copley,  in  London,  in  the  year  17S4.  To  the 
very  great  accuracy  of  this  likeness  I.  who  am  now  the  only  surviving 
child  of  Jonathan  Jackson,  can  bear  testimony.  It  was  May.  1785. 
that  the  picture  was  brought  home  from  London,  and  I  well  remember 
that  I  very  often  sat  so  as  to  see  and  examine  mv  father's  face  and 
figure,  the  expression  of  his  countenance  and  the  dress  which  he  con- 
tinued to  wear  for  some  years  after  the  portrait  was  linished.  This  was 
a  coat  of  deep  blue  color,  with  gilt  buttons,  the  waistcoat  being  to  my 
boyish  eyes  very  handsome  with  broad  stripes.  His  whole  dress  was 
such  as  became  the  fashion  of  the  times,  a  point  as  to  which  he  was 
never  negligent. 

As  previously  stated,  Jonathan  Jackson  sold  to  Thomas 
Thomas,  May  27,  1795,  for  X'2,000,  the  house  and  land 
described  in  the  deed,  recorded  in  book  162,  leaf  loi.as 
follows  :  — 

iieginning  on  Higli  Street,  so  called,  at  the  northerlv  corner  of  the 
land   ot    Zaciiariah    .Atwood,    junior,  thence   runnini;-    .South    tliirtv  ei<jht 


HEXTEK    norsF.  569 

degrees  west,  houiuling  i)artly  on  land  of  said  Atwood  and  ])artlv  on 
William  Wyer's  land  as  the  fence  now  stands,  to  the  highway  l)v  the 
common  pasture,  now  known  and  called  by  the  name  of  Low  Street, 
thence  running  north  seventy  one  degrees  west  on  said  Low  Street  to  a 
divisional  fence  as  it  now  stands  between  the  estate  now  occupied  bv 
John  Tracy,  Esq.,  and  the  estate  herein  described,  thence  bv  said  fence 
northerly  to  the  l)ottom  of  the  hill,  till  it  comes  to  the  fence  on  the  lot 
which  runs  over  to  the  land  formerly  the  property  of  Somerbv's  heirs 
(and  now  owned  by  said  Atwood  and  said  Wyer)  and  Joseph  Hovt's 
land,  thence  from  said  fence  running  upon  a  line  drawn  parallel  to  the 
southeastern  end  of  the  house  built  by  me  and  situate  on  the  premises, 
and  midway  between  said  houses  at  ecjual  distances  from  each  until  it 
meets  a  pillar  on  said  High  vStreet  and  measuring  on  said  line  about 
thirty  two  rods  and  two  fifths  of  a  rod.  thence  from  said  pillar  running 
south  fifty  seven  degrees  east  to  the  bounds  first  mentioned,  together 
with  all  the  buildings  thereon,  meaning  hereby  to  convey  all  the  estate 
that  was  by  John  Lowell,  Esq.,  released  to  me  October  21,  177N.  con- 
taining 8  acres,  i  13  rods. 

Captain  Thomas  Thomas  was  an  active  and  patriotic  citi- 
zen of  Newburyport,  largely  interested  in  commercial  enter- 
prises. He  was  a  firm  and  zealous  supporter  of  the  g-overn- 
ment  during  the  Revolutionary  War,  and  was  placed  in 
command  of  one  of  the  vessels  that  sailed  from  this  port 
in  1779  to  attack  the  military  post  established  by  the  Kng- 
lish  troops  on  the  Penobscot  River.  Captain  Micajah  Lunt, 
who  joined  this  expedition,  says  :  — 

In  the  war  of  the  Revolution,  in  the  year  1779,  I  shipped  in  New- 
buryport on  board  the  armed  ship  \'engeance.  commanded  by  Thomas 
Thomas,  in  the  expedition  to  Penobscot,  which  ship  was  driven  up  the 
river  by  the  British  fleet,  and  with  others  in  the  expedition,  was  burnt 
by  order  of  the  Commodore  to  prevent  them  falling  into  the  hands  of 
the  British  ;  their  crew  took  to  the  woods,  and  on  foot  found  their  way 
back  to  the  province  of  Massachusetts  (History  of  Newburyport.  by 
Mrs.  E.  \'ale  Smith,  page   iiS). 

In  a  brief  sketch  of  this  disastrous  expedition  by  Hon. 
I^ben  F.  Stone,  published  in  the  Newburyport  I Ici'ahf  ]-^w.  9 
and  10,  1879,  ^'""^  writer  says  :  — 

Of  the  captains  of  these  vessels,  who  were  undoubtedly  selected 
because  of  their  superior  fitness  for  this  service,  little  is  now  known, 
with    the    exception    of   Thomas    Thomas,    who  rose  from    an    humble 


570  OULD   XEWBCRV 

position  lo  llic  rank  of  one  of  our  first  merchants,  wiien  he  affected 
with  success  the  stvle  and  port  of  an  accomplished  gentleman  of  the 
old  school.  He  was  the  first  commander  of  the  Newburyport  Artil- 
lery Com])anv  and  was  distinguished  for  his  boldness  and  enterprise. 
Danger  and  excitement  had  a  charm  for  him.  He  liked  the  license  of 
a  revolutionary  period:  and  he  possessed,  in  large  measure,  the  qualities 
whith  make  the  leader  in  critical  times.  He  would  rather  make  a 
dollar  in  privateering  than  twice  that  sum  in  the  dull  ways  of  peaceful 
commerce.  He  was  the  man  who  responded  so  promptly  to  the  call  of 
tile  .State,  in  behalf  of  the  Newburyport  Artillery  Company,  in  1778. 
logo  to  Rhode  Island,  with  the  reply,  -We  accept  with  cheerfulness 
\(nn"  invitation,  and  will  report  for  duty  immediately."  Take  him  all  in 
all.  he  was  one  of  the  most  interesting  tigures  in  this  town  during  the 
Revolutionarv  War.  His  character  had  something  of  that  quality  which 
touches  the  imagination  and  lifts  a  man  beyond  the  level  of  common- 
place. He  was  not  a  model,  not  so  well  organized  as  Parsons  or  Hodge, 
not  so  unexceptionable  a  citizen  ;  but  was  built  on  a  larger  scale,  and 
surpassed  them  liotli  in  boldness  and  power  of  command. 

He  was  a  vcstr\man  of  .St.  Paul's  Church  from  177910 
17.S8,  incliisi\c.  He  tUd  not  hxe  l()n_t;'  to  enjoy  his  new  home. 
He  l)oii,L;"ht  tlie  house  and  land  of  Jonathan  Jackson  May  27, 
1795,  and  died  August  2,  1796,  ai;'ed  fift}'-nine.  His  wife, 
Mai'tha,  died  Aug.  31,  1793,  in  the  forty-sex-enth  year  of  her 
age.      They  were  both  buried  in  St.  Paul's  churchyard. 

His  will,  dated  July  25,  1796,  and  proved  Nov.  7,  1796, 
gave  to  his  daughters,  Ivlizabeth,  Mary,  Martha,  and  Catha- 
rine, the  house  and  land  on  High  Street,  appraised  at  $6,000, 
"  which  I  lately  purchased  of  Jonathan  Jackson,  PLsquire." 

Aug.  15,  1798,  John  Murra}',  of  Newbur)'port,  mariner, 
and  wife  I^lizabeth,  in  her  own  right,  Mary  Thomas,  single 
woman  and  si)inster,  Michael  Hodge,  Ksc|.,  guardian  of 
Martha  Thomas  and  Catharine  Thomas,  all  daughters  of 
Thomas  Thomas,  deceased,  all  of  Xewbmxport.  for  86,360, 
con\e)ed  to  Timothy  Dexter,  of  Newbiu-Nport,  the  land  and 
buildings  abox'C  described  (book   164,  ]:)age  216). 

The  peculiaiit  ies  and  eccent  ricitii's  ol  the  new  owner  of 
this  pidpcrtN'  ha\e  olten  been  described  and  \ai"ioush'  com- 
mented upon  ;  but  Mr.  William  C.  Todd,  of  .\tkinson,  X.  II., 
in  an  article  published  in  the  (i,  iiC(ili\i:;ical  l\i\i:;istcr  {(n-  Octo- 
ber,  I  <S(S6,  has  biought  out  some  new  and    interesting  tacts  in 


D  EX  TF.  R    HO  I SE  5  7  1 

regard  to  the  means  and  methods  adopted  by  Dexter  for  the 
acquisition  of  wealth.  A  second  article  republished  in  the 
Xi-zobuiyport  Herald  I'^eb.  20,  1895,  seems  to  prove  conclu- 
sively that  the  dates  and  incidents  of  Dextcr's  early  life  as 
given  b)'  Samuel  L.  Knapp  and  other  biographers  are  incor- 
rectly stated. 

In  a  conveyance  made  by  William  Wyer  to  Timothy 
Dexter  of  about  thirty-three  square  rods  of  land,  extending 
from  Prospect  Street  to  a  \va)'  or  lane  that  was  afterward 
called  Temple  Street,  dated  Jan.  3,  1770,  and  recorded  in  the 
Essex  registry  of  deeds,  book  127,  page  150,  Dexter  is 
described  as  a  leather  dresser,  residing  in  Newburyport.  At 
that  date  he  was  onl}-  twenty-three  years  of  age.  He  was 
born  in  Maiden  Jan.  22,  1746-7,  and  probably  came  to  New- 
bin-}'port  as  soon  as  he  was  able  to  support  himself  at  his 
trade.  There  is  no  evidence  that  he  was  ever  established  in 
business  in  Charlestown. 

In  a  communication  published  in  the  Xci^'bnrvport  Herald 
Jan.  14,  1806,  Dexter  says  :  — 

1735  in  ?\lay  9  Day  my  father  put  me  with  A  farmer  in  Maiden  in 
which  I  stayed  six  years  and  six  months,  then  went  to  Chalston.  I 
stayed  Leaven  months  At  Dressin  of  skins  for  briches  &  gloves,  then 
went  to  boston:  there  stayed  till  1  was  free  —  in  fourteene  days  I  went 
to  Newbury  I'ort  with  A  bondel  in  my  hand  to   A  plase  all  none  to  me. 

These  statements  are  undoubtedl}-  true  and  in  harmony 
with  facts  that  have  been  ascertained  from  other  sources. 

Timothy  Dexter  married,  in  May,  1770,  Elizabeth  (Lord) 
Erothingham,  who  was  several  years  older  than  himself.  She 
was  the  daughter  of  John  Lord,  of  Exeter,  N.  H.,  and 
widow  of  Benjamin  Erothingham,  of  Newburyport.  Letters 
of  administration  were  granted  on  the  estate  of  Benjamin 
Erothingham  July  25,  1769,  and  the  widow  was  appointed 
administratrix. 

The  children  of  Benjamin  and  I-21izabeth  Erothingham 
were  :  — 

Benjamin  (oldest  son),  born  in  1761. 

Oilman,  born  May  17,  1763. 

John,  born  Feb.  24.  1765. 

Betty,  born  Feb.  22,  1767. 


572  OULD    XEU'BURY 

At  the  time  of  her  second  marriage,  Mrs.  I^Hzabeth  Froth- 
ingham  was  li\ing  in  a  house  belongini;'  to  the  estate  of 
Benjamin  l-'rotliingham,  now  standing  on  the  corner  of  (jreen 
and  Merrimac  streets,  Newburyport.  Tradition  asserts  that 
Dexter  carried  on  the  business  of  leather  dressing  in  that 
vicinit}'  for  man)-  years  ;  and  his  wife,  it  is  said,  kej^it  a 
huckster's  shop  in  the  basement  of  the  house  for  the  sale  of 
provisions  and  small  fruits  and  vegetables  in  their  season. 

In  1 78 1,  (ireen  Street  was  laid  out  four  rods  wide  from 
High  Street  to  the  water  side,  the  heirs  of  I^enjamin  I^'roth- 
ingham,  and  other  owners  of  real  estate  in  that  vicinity, 
donating  the  land  for  this  purpose.  Oct.  12,  1782,  Renjamin 
Frothingham,  of  Newburyport,  mariner  (oldest  son  of  Benja- 
min F'rothingham,  deceased),  for  X240,  sold  to  Timoth}- 
Dexter,  of  Newburyport,  leather  dresser,  two-fifths  of  a  house 
in  Newburyport,  and  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same, 
"  bounded  northeasterl)'  on  Merrimack  Street,  northwesterly 
on  Green  Street,  southwesterly  on  land  of  Benjamin  (ireen- 
leaf,  &  southeasterly  on  land  of  Jonathan  Titcomb,  l'!sc|.," 
"  being  the  house  where  the  said  Timothy  now  lives,"  "  to- 
gether with  H  of  a  wall  pew  in  the  Presbyterian  meeting- 
house in  said  Newburyport  being  the  fourth  Pew  on  the  right 
hand  of  the  northwest  meeting  house  door,"  subject  to  claim 
of  dower  of  the  grantor's  mother,  IClizabeth  l)exter  (Flssex 
registry  of  deeds,  book  140,  page  34). 

Oct.  29,  1787,  (lilman  h^-othingham  con\eyed  one-fifth  of 
the  same  proi)ert)-  to  Timoth}-  Dexter  (book  147,  ]3age  n)  ; 
and  the  same  da}'  Timoth\-  Dexter  and  his  wife  l^lizabeth 
sold  the  house  and  land  to  Meriam  Trac}',  of  Newburx  port, 
widow  (book  147,  page  34). 

April  8,  1 791,  Dexter  bought  the  Trac}'  house  (now  the 
Public  Library  Building)  for  /!' 1,400,  and  sold  it  to  Jt)hn 
(ireenleaf  April  9,  1796,  for  ^8,400.  In  this  conveyance 
Dexter  is  described  as  li\ing  in  Chester,  \.  11.  This  state- 
ment is  corroboi-ated  and  conhrmed  by  tiie  hisloi-ian  of  that 
town,  who  states  that  Dextei-  bought  a  house  in  Chester  in 
1796  and  lived  there  for  two  or  three  \'ears. 

l're\ioiis  to  this  date  the  eccentricities   of    Timotlu'  Dexter 


D/-:.\77<N  Nors/-:  573 

were  not  i)articularl_\'  prominent  and  had  not  attracted  much 
public  attention.  On  his  return  to  Xe\vbur)-port  in  1798,  he 
took  possession  of  tlie  house  and  grounds,  i)urchased  of  the 
heirs  of  Captain  Gliomas  Thomas  in  the  month  of  August  of 
that  }ear,  and  proceeded  to  decorate  them  in  an  extravagant 
and  ostentatious  manner.  Mr.  William  C.  Todd,  in  his  sketch 
of  the  life  and  character  of  Timoth}-  Dexter,  says  :  — 

He  laid  out  the  grouncLs  after  what  he  was  told  wa.s  the  European 
style,  and  had  fruits,  flowers,  and  shrubbery  of  many  varieties  planted 
in  them.  He  put  minarets  on  the  roof  of  the  house,  surmounted  with 
ijilt  balls,  and  in  front  placed  rows  of  columns  lifteen  feet  high, —  about 
forty  in  all  —  each  having  on  its  top  a  statue  of  some  distinguished  man. 
Before  the  door  were  two  lions  on  each  side,  with  open  mouths,  to 
guard  the  entrance.  On  the  arch,  and  occupying  the  most  prominent 
position,  were  the  statues  of  Washington.  Adams,  and  Jefferson,  and  to 
the  other  statues  he  gave  the  names  of  Bonaparte.  Xelson.  Franklin, 
and  other  heroes,  often  changing  them  according  to  his  fancv.  In  a 
conspicuous  place  was  a  statue  of  himself  with  the  inscription.  ••  I  am 
the  tirst  in  the  East,  the  first  in  the  West,  and  the  greatest  philosopher 
in  the  known  world."  All  these  statues  were  carved  in  wood  by  a 
young  ship-carver,  Joseph  Wilson,  who  had  just  come  to  Newburyport. 
They  were  gaudily  painted  :  and,  though  having  but  little  merit  as  works 
of  art.  and  less  as  likenesses,  gave  the  house  a  strange  appearance  and 
attracted  crowds,  whose  curiosity  deeply  gratified  the  owner,  and  he 
freely  opened  the  grounds  to  them. 

Dexter  published  from  time  to  time  in  the  columns  of  the 
JW-iL'biiryport  Herald  strange  and  whimsical  communications 
that  served  to  increase  his  notoriety.  Persuaded  in  his  own 
mind  that  he  could  amuse  the  public  and  at  the  same  time 
gratif}'  his  inordinate  vanity,  he  wrote  a  small  book,  or 
pamphlet,  called  "  Pickle  for  the  Knowing  Ones,"  which  he 
printed  at  his  own  expense  and  distributed  gratuitously.  The 
fabulous  stories  with  which  he  filled  this  little  volume  were, 
no  doubt,  in\-ented  for  the  purpose  of  magnifying  his  wealth 
and  imposing  upon  the  credulity  of  those  who  were  constantly 
asking  "  How  did  Dexter  make  his  money  .'  " 

Timothy  Dexter  died  Oct.  26,  1806.  In  his  will,  dated 
March  i,  1799,  and  proved  Nov.  3,  1806,  he  made  several 
public  bec[uests,  and  among  them  was  the  sum  of  S2,ooo,  the 


DEXTER    HOUSE  5  75 

interest  to  be  expcntlcd  annually  for  the  benefit  of  the  poor 
of  the  town  of  Newburyport.  llie  "rest  and  residue"  of 
his  estate  he  gave  to  his  son,  Samuel  Lord  Dexter,  and  his 
daughter,  Nancy  Hishoj:),  wife  of  Abraham  Bishop.  In  case 
of  their  decease  without  issue,  "the  rest  and  residue"  was 
devised  to  his  brothers,  Nathan  Dexter  and  John  Dexter. 

Samuel  Lord  Dexter,  the  only  son  of  Timoth)'  Dexter,  was 
baptized  Oct.  6,  1772,  by  the  Rev.  Thomas  Cary,  pastor  of 
the  F'irst  Religit)us  Society  of  Newburyport,  and  was  married 
to  Esther  Dexter  Jan.  11,  1807,  by  Rev.  John  (jiles,  pastor 
of  the  Second  Presbyterian  Society  of  Newburyport.  He 
died  July  20,  1807,  leaving  no  children;  and  his  widow 
married,  Nov.  16,  1809,  William   Rose  of  Charlestown. 

hi  the  registry  of  deeds  at  Salem  (book  210,  page  291), 
will  be  found  the  record,  in  full,  of  a  marriage  contract,  made 
Nov.  14,  1809,  between  William  Rose,  of  Charlestown,  Mass., 
merchant,  and  Esther  Dexter,  of  Newburyport,  widow,  and 
Nathaniel  Knapp,  Jr.,  of  Newburyport,  merchant,  in  which 
the  said  William  and  Esther  agree  to  marry  each  other  ;  and 
Esther,  being  possessed  of  real  estate  and  also  entitled  to 
dower  in  some  lands  owned  by  Samuel  Lord  Dexter,  her  late 
husband,  deceased,  the  said  William  covenants  and  agrees  to 
release  any  interest  he  may  ha\e  in  said  parcels  of  real  estate 
to  the  said  Nathaniel  Knapp,  Jr.,  who  is  to  hold  the  property 
for  the  benefit  of  the  said  Esther  Dexter. 

April  28,  1807,  the  household  furniture  belonging  to  the 
estate  of  Timothy  Dexter,  "  and  the  carved  images  with  the 
pillars  on  which  they  stand,"  were  advertised  to  be  sold  at 
public  auction  "on  Tuesday  the  12"'  of  May  next"  by  P. 
Bagley  &  Son,  auctioneers. 

March  8,  1808,  the  following  notice  was  published  in  the 
Xcivlvtryport  Herald :  — 

Samuel  Richardson  informs  his  friends  and  the  pubh'c  in  general 
that  he  has  removed  from  the  Hotel  on  Plum  Island  to  that  elegant  and 
spacious  House  owned  by  the  late  Timothy  Dexter,  High  Street,  where 
he  has  good  accommodations  for  travellers  and  others  who  mav  favor 
him  with  their  custom. 


576  GULP    .\I-:WBURV 

I^lizabcth  Dexter,  widow  of  Timoth)'  Dexter,  died  July  3, 
1809.  Soon  after  her  decease  the  liouse  was  rented  to 
Thomas  Marshall  and  afterward  to  Stephen  Marshall,  inn- 
keepers ;  and,  under  their  charge,  it  became  a  famous  ]:)lace 
of  public  resort.  At  a  later  date  it  was  leased  to  Mrs. 
Hannah  Toppan  Marshall,  who  occu]Med  it  as  a  residence 
and  boarding-house  until  1852. 

Nancy  Dexter,  only  daughter  of  Timoth)'  Dexter,  was  born 
Aug.  16,  1776,  and  married  Abi-aham  Hishop,  of  New  Ha\en, 
Conn.  This  marriage  was  not  a  hapi)y  one.  Husband  and 
wife  soon  sejiarated ;  and,  b}-  an  arrangement  made  with 
I'homas  and  Ste})hen  Marshall,  and  afterward  with  Mrs. 
Hannah  T.  Marshall,  Mrs.  l^ishop  was  provided  with  board 
and  lodging  in  the  Dexter  house,  Newburyport,  during  the 
remainder  of  her  life.  With  impaired  intellect  and  confirmed 
habits  of  intoxication,  she  reciuired  constant  care  and  atten- 
tion. She  died  Sept.  30,  1851,  leaving  one  daughter,  Mary 
Ann  Bishop,  who  married  a  lawyer  of  respectability  and 
prominence  in  New  Haven.  He  was  afterward  apj^ointed 
judge  of  one  of  the  subordinate  courts  in  Connecticut. 

Feb.  2,  1852,  Mary  Ann  Clark,  of  New  Haven,  Conn., 
"only  child  and  heir-at-law  of  Nancy  Dexter  Bishop,"  sold  to 
Elbridge  (j.  Kelley  the  Dexter  house  "  with  all  the  land 
thereunto  belonging  for  the  sum  of  seven  thousand  dollars." 
Dr.  Kelley  exhibited  great  skill  and  taste  in  the  planting  of 
trees  and  shrubbery  and  in  otherwise  improving  the  house  and 
grounds.  With  his  wife  and  famil}',  he  made  it  an  attractive 
and  pleasant  home  for  more  than  twenty  }ears.  He  was 
mayor  of  the  city  of  Newbur\])ort  in  1871  antl  1872;  and 
April  30,  1874,  he  sold  the  ])ropert)'  to  lion,  (ieorge  H. 
Corliss,  of  Providence,  R.  I.,  the  eminent  inventor  and  manu- 
factiu'er  of  stationary  engines  and   pumping  machiner)'. 

Mr.  Coi'liss  died  in  Providence  P"eb.  21,  1888.  The  house, 
with  the  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same,  is  now  ownetl 
by  his  widow,  Mrs.  ICmil)'  A.  Corliss,  and  occu])ied  b\'  Miss 
Catherine  G.  Shaw,  sister  of   Mrs.  Corliss. 


LOWELL-JOHNSON   HOUSE. 


The  sale  of  the  Lowell  house  on  Greenleaf's  lane  to 
Patrick  Tracy  was  concluded  March  9,  1771.  Two  weeks 
later,  John  Lowell,  counsellor-at-law,  and  Jonathan  Jackson, 
merchant,  bought  of  r:iizabeth  Stickney  about  five  acres  of 
land  on  High  Street,  opposite  the  head  of  Olive  Street, 
"  bounded  northeasterly  on  the  High  Street,  southeasterly  on 
land  of  Edmund  Kartlett,  southwesterly  on  said  Bartlett's 
land,  and  northwesterly  on  land  of  Joseph  Hoyt "  (Essex 
Deeds,  book  129,  leaf  54). 

On  one-half  this  land  Mr.  Lowell  built  the  large  three-story 
dwelling-house  now  owned  and  occupied  by  Mr.  William  R. 
Johnson  ;  and  on  the  other  half  of  the  land  Mr.  Jackson  built 
the  Dexter  house,  at  present  owned  by  Mrs.  George  H. 
Corliss,  of  Providence,  R.  L 

John  Lowell  was  the  only  son  of  Rev.  John  Lowell, 
minister  of  the  P'irst  Religious  Society  in  Newburyport. 
He  was  born  June  17,  1743,  and  graduated  at  Harvard 
College  in  1760.  He  was  an  intimate  friend  of  Jonathan 
Jackson,  who  graduated  from  the  same  college  one  year  later, 
in  1 76 1. 

John  Lowell  married  Sarah  Higginson,  daughter  of  Stephen 
Higginson,  of  Salem,  Mass.  She  died  May  5,  1772,  and  he 
married  for  his  second  wife  Susan  Cabot  May  31,  1774. 

About  the  time  of  his  second  marriage  he  built  the  house 
designated  in  this  sketch  as  the  Lowell-Johnson  house. 

Oct.  21,  1778,  partition  was  made  of  the  land  owned  in 
common  by  John  Lowell  and  Jonathan  Jackson  (see  PIssex 
registry  of  deeds,  book  136,  leaf  152);  and  the  same  day 
John  Lowell  sold  for  /?  10,000  his  part  of  the  land  on  High 
Street,  with  the  dwelling-house  thereon,  to  Patrick  l^racy  and 
removed  his  family  to  Boston. 


578  OULP    XEWin-RY 

lie  was  eminent  as  a  lawyer  antl  represented  Newbui"}'])()i"t 
in  tlie  pioxincial  assembly  in  1776.  He  was  a  delegate  from 
Boston  to  the  convention  that  framed  the  constitution  of 
Massachusetts  in  1780;  and  by  his  efforts  secured  the  adop- 
tion of  the  clause,  "  all  men  are  born  free  and  equal,"  which, 
by  a  subsequent  decision  of  the  supreme  court,  abolished 
slavery  in  the  State.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Continental 
Congress  in  1782-3,  and  in  1789  was  appointed  by  Washing- 
ton judge  of  the  United  States  circuit  court  for  the  district 
of  Massachusetts.  Harvard  ga\e  him  the  degree  of  LL.  1). 
in  1792. 

He  married  Sarah  Higginson  Jan.  3,  1767.  The  children 
by  this  marriage  were  :  — 

.Anna  Cabot,  born  March  30,  1  7r),S  ;   died  in  December,  1810. 
John,  born  Oct.  6,  1769;   died  March  12,  1840. 
.Sarah  Champney,  born  Jan.  i,  1771  ;   died  in  1.S51. 

His  son  John,  born  1769,  was  a  noted  political  writer  on 
the  Federalist  side.  He  married  Rebecca  Amory,  and  had 
a  son,  John  Amory  Lowell,  who  was  the  father  of  John 
Lowell,  the  distinguished  judge  of  the  United  States  court 
for  the  district  of  Massachusetts,  who  resigned  his  seat  on 
the  bench  in  1884. 

Sarah  (Higginson)  Lowell  died  ALi)'  5,  1772,  in  Newbur)'- 
port,  aged  twenty-seven,  and  was  buried  in  the  Old  Hill  bury- 
ing ground,  a  few  rods  in  a  westerly  direction  from  the  Hill 
Street  entrance. 

Judge  Lowell  married  for  his  second  wife  Susan  Cabot, 
daughter  of  Francis  Cabot,  May  31,  1774.  His  children  by 
this  marriage  were  :  — 

Francis  Cabot,  horn  /\pril  7,  1  775.  lor  wlioni  tlie  citv  of  Lowell  was 
named  and  I'atlier  of  John  Lowell,  wlio  founded  the  Lowell  Insti- 
tute, Boston;    died  Aug.  10.  1.S17. 

.Susan  Cabot,  born  Dec.  28,  177O:  married  Uenjamin  (lorham:  died 
Feb.  26.  1816. 

Mrs.  Susan  (Cabot)  Lowell  died  Marcli  30,  1777  ;  and  Judge 
Lowell   mairied,   Jan.    2"],    1 778,   for   liis   tliird   wife,    Kebecca 


LOWELL-JOIINSOX    HOUSE  579 

Tyng,  widow  of  James  Tyng,  of   Dunstable,  and   daughter  of 
James  Russell.      The  children  by  this  marriage  were:  — 

Rebecca  Russell,  born  May  17.  ^11'^)'-    d'ed  i>^  '''^53- 

Charles,  born  Aug.  15,  1782:    father  of  James   Russell  Lowell,  the  poet 

and  minister  plenipotentiary  from  the  United  States  to  the  Court  of 

St.  James. 
Elizabeth  Cutts,  born  Dec.  8.  1783;   died  1864. 
Mary,  born  May  31.  1786:   died  1789. 

Judge  Lowell  died  in  Roxlnuy  May  6,  1802,  and  his  widow 
died  Sept.  15,  1816. 

After  the  house  built  by  Judge  Lowell,  on  High  Street,  in 
Newburyport,  was  sold  to  Patrick  Tracy,  it  remained  in  his 
possession  for  many  years  and  was  occupied  by  his  son,  John 
Tracy,  who  was  born  April  19,  1753,  and  married  Margaret 
Laughton*  May  2,  1775.  The  children  of  John  and  Mar- 
garet Tracy  were  :  — 

John,  born  March  4,  1776:   died  Nov.  27,  1781. 

Henry  Laughton.  born  Sept.  i.  1777:   died  May  26,  1797. 

Nathaniel,  born  June  19.  1779;   lost  at  sea  in  the  year  1800,  aged  21. 

Margaret,  born  March  22.  1781  :   died  June  25.  1843. 

Mary,  born  March  22,  1781  ;   married  Christopher  Bassett. 

Henrietta,  born  June  28.  1782:   married  William  P.  Johnson. 

John,  born  Jan.  2.  i  7S6 ;   died  in  Matanzas  Aug.  28.  1822. 

Elizabeth  Farris,  born  Dec.  14,  1791  ;   married  Henry  Loring.  of  Boston: 

she  died  Aug.  15.  1825  :   he  died  June  i  i.  1866. 
Catherine   De   Blois,  born   Nov.  12.  1794:    married   George  Titcomb  in 

May,  1819;  he  died  Dec.  4,  1863:  she  died  March  13,  1875. 

In  November,  1782,  Marquis  De  Chastellux,  one  of  the 
forty  members  of  the  French  Academy,  and  major-general 
in  the  French  Army  under  the  Count  de  Rochambeau, 
travelling  through  New  England,  visited  Newburyport.  He 
had  with  him  for  companions  "  Messieurs  Lynch,  de  Montes- 
quieu, the  Baron  de  Taleyrand  and  M.  de  Vaudreuil."  In 
the  second  volume  of  his  Travels  (page  240),  is  the  following 
account  of  his  reception  by  Mr.  John  Tracy  :  — 

The  road  from  Portsmouth  to  Newbury  passes  through  a  barren 
country.      Hampton  is  the  only  township  you  meet  with,  and  there  are 

*  .Margaret  Laughton  was  born  May  12,  1755,  and  died  Xov.  9.  1S06. 


L  O  WELL-JO HXSOX    HO  USE  5  §  ' 

not  such  handsome  houses  there  as  at  ("xreenhmd.  ...  It  was  two  o'clock 
when  we  reached  Merimack  ferry,  and  from  the  shore  we  saw  the  open- 
ings  of   the   harbour,  the  channel  of  which    passes   near   the   northern 
extremity  of  Plumb  Island,  on  which   is  a  small  fort,  with  a  few  cannon 
and  mortars.   .  .  .   After  passing  the  ferry  in  little  flat  boats,  which  held 
only  five  horses  each,  we  went  to   Mr.   Davenport's  inn.  where  we  found 
a  good   dinner  ready.      I  had   letters  from    Mr.  Wentworth  to  Mr.  John 
Tracy,  the  most  considerable  merchant  in  the  place :   but,  before  1  had 
time  to  send  them,  he  had  heard   of   my  arrival,  and.  as  I  was  arising 
from   table,  entered  the  room,  and  very  politely  invited   me  to  pass  the 
evening  with   him.      He  was  accompanied  by  a  Colonel,  whose  name  is 
too  difficult  for  me  to  write,  having  never  been  able  to  catch  the  manner 
of  pronouncing  it :   but  it  was  something  like  Wigsteps.*     This   Colonel 
remained  with   me  till   Mr.   Tracy  finished   his  business,  when  he  came 
with  two  handsome  carriages,  well  equipped,  and  conducted  me  and  my 
Aide  de  Campe  to  his  country  house.     This  house  stands  a  mile  from 
the  town  in  a  verv  beautiful  situation :   but  of  this   I   could  myself  form 
no  judgment,  as  it  was  already  night.      I   went,  however,  by  moonlight, 
to   see  the  garden,  which   is   composed  of  different  terraces.      There  is 
likewise  a  hot  house  and  a  number  of  young  trees.     The  house  is  very 
handsome  and  well  finished,  and  everything  breathes  that  air  of  magnifi- 
cence, accompanied  with  simplicity,  which  is  only  to  be  found  amongst 
merchants.     The  evening  passed  rapidly  by  the  aid  of  agreeable  conver- 
sation  and  a   few   glasses  of  punch.     The  ladies  we  found  assembled 
were    Mrs.    Tracv.  her  two   sisters,   and  their  cousin.  Miss   Lee.      Mrs. 
Tracy  has   an   agreeable   and   a  sensible  countenance,  and  her  manners 
correspond   with   her   appearance.     At  ten   o'clock  an  excellent  supper 
was  served  ;   we  drank  good  wine.      Miss   Lee   sung,   and  prevailed  on 
Messieurs  de  Vaudreuil  and  Taleyrand  to  sing  also:   towards  midnight 
the   ladies   withdrew,    but   we   continued    drinking   Maderia   and    Xery. 
Mr.  Tracy,  according  to   the   custom  of  the   country,  offered  us   pipes, 
which  were  accepted  by  M.  de  Taleyrand,  and   M.  de  Montesquieu,  the 
consequence  of  which   was  that  they  became   intoxicated  and   were  led 
home,  where  they  were  happy  to  get  to  bed.      As  to  myself,  I  remained 
perfectly  cool,  and  continued  to  converse  on  trade  and  politics  with  Mr. 
Tracy,  who  interested  me  greatly  with  an  account  of  all  the  vicissitudes 
of  his  fortune  since  the  beginning  of  the  war.   ...    I  left  Newburyport 
the  13"'  at  ten  in  the  morning,  and  often  stopped  before   I   lost  sight  of 
this  prettv  little  town,  for  I  had  great  pleasure  in  enjoying  the  different 
aspects  it  presents.      It  is  in  general  well  built,  and  is  daily  increasing 
in  new  buildings.      The   ware  houses   of  the   merchants,  which   are  near 
their  own  homes,  serve  by  way  of  ornament,  and  in  point  of  architecture 
resemble  not  a  little  our  own  large  greenhouses. 

*  Probably  Colonel  KcUvard  Wigglesworth. 


582 


Ori.D    iVElVBURY 


This  visit  of  Marquis  do  Chastcllux,  in  comixui)'  with  Baron 
de  Taleyrand,  is  often  relied  upon  to  prove  the  statement 
that  Talleyrand,  the  distinguished  minister  of  foreign  affairs 
in  France,  was  at  one  time  in  Newburyport.  But  there  is 
abundant  evidence  to  show^  that  Bart)n  de  Tale)rand  and 
Prince  de  Talleyrand  are  not  one  and  the  same  person.  The 
latter  was  an  ordained  priest  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Church, 
and  in  1788  was  made  bishop  of  Autun.  At  the  time  Baron 
de  Taleyrand  was  in  Newburyport,  Charles  Maurice  de 
Talle3'rand.  then   Abbe    de    Perigord,   and    afterward    Prince 


,/^s\^. 


HALL    AND    STAIRCASE. 


de  Talleyrand,  was  in  h'rance  attending  to  his  duties  as 
agent-general  of  the  clergy,  representing  their  interests  with 
the  government  in  all  that  related  to  the  revenue  and  cxjiend- 
iture  of  the  Church  and  the  maintenance  of  its  privileges. 
He  did  not  enter  political  life  until  1792,  and  was  soon  com- 
])elled  to  seek  safety  beyond  the  sea.  He  arrived  in  America 
early  in  1794,  and  remained  in  this  country  until  the  mitldle 
of  1796.  He  passed  most  of  his  time  in  New  \'ork  and 
Philadeljjhia.  He  visited  Boston,  howexer,  and  went  as  tar 
PLast  as  Machias  ;  but  there  is  no  exidence  that  he  was  e\er 
in  Newbur}port. 


LOWELL-JOIINSOX    HOUSE  5^3 

The  ]-5anMi  tie  Taleyrand,  who  accompanied  Marquis  de 
Chastelhix  in  his  travels  thnnigh  New  England,  was 
undoubtedly  Count  Bozon  de  Perigord,  who  came  to  America 
in  1782  with  the  Prince  de  Broglie  in  the  French  frigate 
"Aigle."  He  appears  to  have  had  several  titles  and  was 
sometimes  designated  Bozon,  or  de  Talleyrand,  or  de  Peri- 
gord. Drake  in  "  Landmarks  of  Boston,"  page  435,  says  that 
he  was  a  brother  of  Prince  Talleyrand,  but  of  this  fact  there  is 
no  positive  proof. 

M.  de  Montesquieu  was  a  grandson  of  the  author  of  the 
"Spirit  of  the  Laws."  He  was  an  aid-de-camp  to  Marquis 
de  Chastelhix  in  1780  and  1781,  and  afterward  went  to 
P^ ranee,  returning  to  America  in  1782  in  the  P^rench  frigate 
"  Gloire."  Viscount  de  Vaudreuil  was  a  passenger  in  the 
same  ship. 

Monsieur  Lynch  was  born  in  London  in  1755  of  Catholic 
parents,  who  sent  him  to  France  to  be  educated.  He  was 
present  at  the  siege  of  Yorktown.  After  his  return  to  Paris, 
he  was  made  a  colonel  in  the  P^-ench  Army,  and  in  P^b- 
ruary,  1792,  marcchal  dc  camp,  and  afterward  lieutenant- 
general. 

P^or  other  interesting  facts  relating  to  these  distinguished 
visitors,  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  second  volume  of  "  The 
P^rench  in  America  during  the  War  of  Independence,"  by 
Thomas  Balch,  translated  by  Edwin  Swift  Balch  and  P:isie 
Willing  Balch,   and  published  in   Philadelphia  in    1895. 

Mr.  John  Tracy  was  generous  and  liberal  in  the  expenditure 
of  his  wealth,  and  entertained  many  other  distinguished  guests 
in  his  hospitable  home.  He  was  an  enthusiastic  supporter  of 
the  colonial  government  during  the  Revolutionary  War  and 
served  in  General  Sullivan's  Army  in  Rhode  Island  as  aide- 
de-camp  to  General  Glover.  He  was  chosen  vestryman  of 
St.  Paul's  Church,  Newburyport,  in  1777,  and  was  annually 
re-elected  to  that  office  until  his  death,  March  i,  181 5,  with 
the  exception  of  four  years,  from  1780  to  1783,  inclusive, 
when  he  served  as  senior  warden.  He  was  a  member  of  St. 
John's  Lodge  of  P^ree  and  Accepted  Masons,  in  good  and 
regular  standing,  from  1781  to  1803,  when  he  was  made  an 
honorary  member. 


584  OUI.D    XEWBURY 

In  carl)'  life  he  was  prosperous  ;  but,  nieetiuL;"  with  re\-erse.s 
at  the  close  of  the  war,  he  was  obliged  to  retrench  in  his 
household  expenses,  and,  after  the  death  of  his  wife,  some 
years  later,  he  joined  with  his  children  in  a  deed  of  sale 
conveying  the  house  in  which  he  lived  to  Eleazer  Johnson. 

His  father,  Patrick  Tracy,  by  his  will,  dated  Oct.  16,  1788, 
and  proved  April  3,  1789,  gave  to  his  grandchildren,  "  Henry 
Laughton  Tracy,  Nathaniel  Tracy,  Margaret  Tracy,  Mary 
Tracy,  Henrietta  Tracy,  and  John  Tracy,  the  children  of  my 
son  John,  and  to  such  other  child  or  children  as  may  be  here- 
after born  to  him  in  lawful  wedlock,  the  dwelling-house  in 
which  he,  my  said  son  John,  now  lixes,  together  with  all  my 
land  under  and  adjoining  the  same,  and  all  the  buildings 
thereon,  all  which  I  purchased  of  John  Lowell,  Esq."  He 
appointed  his  son  John  and  his  son's  wife,  Margaret,  trustees, 
to  hold  the  property,  they  not  being  required  to  account  to 
their  children   for  the  income. 

John  Tracy  gave  a  quitclaim  deed  oi  this  property,  Sept. 
15,  1S09,  to  Eleazer  Johnson,  which  is  recorded  in  the  Essex 
registry  of  deeds,  book  188,  leaf  126. 

John  Tracy,  Jr.,  Margaret  Tracy,  Mary  Tracy,  William  I'. 
Johnson,  and  Henrietta  Johnson,  his  wife,  the  same  day  con- 
veyed to  Eleazer  Johnson  propert)'  described  as  "being  the 
same  which  was  conveyed  our  late  grandfather,  Patrick 
Trac}',  by  John  Lowell,  PLsq.,  by  deed  dated  the  twenty-first 
day  of  October,  A.D.  1778  "    (book  188,  leaf  126). 

William  P'arris,  of  Newburyport  (guardian  of  l^lizabeth 
Earris  Tracy  and  Catharine  Deblois  Tracy,  children  of  John 
Tracy)  by  virtue  of  a  resolve  of  the  General  Court,  conveyed 
two-sixths  of  aboN'c  estate  to  l-^leazei"  Johnson  Se})t.  5,  iSii 
(book  194,  leaf  258). 

l'21eazer  |ohnson  was  born  in  1773  and  maniecl  Sarah 
Newman  in  1797.  He  was  engaged  in  commercial  pursuits, 
and  was  at  one  time  i:)resident  of  the  Mcchanicks'  Hank,  New- 
buryport. He  died  in  1847,  and  left  only  one  son,  Richard 
Johnson,  who  was  boi'u  in    1815. 

Richard    lohnson    mairied     Mrs.     I'"anin'    H.    \\  oodburx'.    ot 


LOIVELL-JOIINSON   HOUSE  585 

Beverly,  daughter  of  Dr.  Nathaniel  Bradstreet,  of  New- 
buryport.  He  died  in  1872,  leaving  two  children,  Caroline 
Elizabeth  and  William  Richard  Johnson,  both  now  living 
in  the  house  designated  in  this  sketch  as  the  Lowell-Johnson 
house. 


NEWBURYPORT   MARINE  SOCIETY. 


On  the  fifth  day  of  November,  1772,  the  following  persons,  viz  :  — 
Captains  Thomas  Jones,  William  Wyer.  Benjamin  Rogers.  Samuel 
Newhall,  Michael  Hodge,  and  Edward  Wigglesworth,  met  together  at 
the  house  of  Captain  Benjamin  Rogers,  in  Newburyport.  New  PLngland, 
and  agreed  to  deposit  in  the  hands  of  Captain  Michael  Hodge  one 
guinea  of  the  value  of  twenty-eight  shillings,  each  person,  for  commenc- 
ing a  fund  for  charitable  purposes  to  the  unfortunate  of  the  Society. 

On  the  thirteenth  day  of  the  same  month  the  number  of 
members  had  increased  to  tw^enty,  and  by-laws  were  adopted 
providing  that  only  shipmasters,  or  those  who  had  served 
in  that  capacity,  should  be  elected  to  membership  ;  that  a 
penalty  should  be  exacted  for  non-attendance  at  the  regular 
monthly  meetings  ;  that  members,  or  the  widows  and  chil- 
dren of  members,  should  receive  pecuniary  assistance,  if 
needed  ;  and  that  observations  at  sea  relating  to  the  varia- 
tions of  the  needle,  soundings,  courses  and  distances,  rocks 
and  shoals,  and  kindred  subjects,  should  be  communicated  to 
the  society  for  the  benefit  and  seciu-ity  of  navigation. 

The  first  few  meetings  of  the  new  organization  were  held 
at  a  private  house;  but  Dec.  2,  1772,  it  was  "Voted  that  the 
Society  shall  meet  at  Captain  William  Davenjjort's  or  any 
other  Public  House  as  shall  be  thought  convenient  by  the 
Society  until  the  twenty-first  day  of  March  next."  Subse- 
quent votes  prove  conclusively  that  for  twenty-five  years  or 
more  the  society  was  accustomed  to  meet  at  the  Wolfe 
Tavern,  then  under  the  management  of  William  Davenport, 
and  afterward  kept  by  Anthony  and  Moses  Davenport. 

It  is  probable  that  the  meetings  of  these  old  ship-masters 
were  enlivened  by  bowls  of  puncli  and  mugs  of  hard  cider,  as 
was   the   custom    in    fraternal    gatherings    in    those  patriotic 


NEWBURYPORT  MARIXE   SOCIETY  587 

days.  There  is  no  mention  of  this  fact  upon  the  records  of 
the  society  ;  but  the  history  of  a  similar  organization  in  Boston 
reveals  various  interesting  items  like  the  following  :  "  Punch 
this  evening,  Room,  candles,  and  attendance  ^3.  9-s\,"  and  a 
few  months  later  a  bill  for  "  20  suppers,  5  Bot.  wine,  2  do 
cyder  and  i  qt  brandy  "  gives  evidence  of  a  more  elaborate 
entertainment.  The  monthly  charges  were  probably  adjusted 
fairly  and  equitably  in  accordance  with  a  vote  "  that  at  each 
meeting,  the  Room,  Fireing,  and  Candles  be  paid  by  the 
Society,  and  the  Liquors  be  paid  by  the  members  present  at 
each  meeting." 

The  Salem  Marine  Society  was  the  second  organization 
of  the  kind  in  America,  and  its  members  were  accustomed 
to  assemble  at  the  old  Sun  Tavern  in  Salem.  Its  records 
show  that  refreshments  of  a  solid  as  well  as  a  licjuid  nature 
were  occasionally,  if  not  regularly,  provided. 

The  Newburyport  society  was  evidently  organized  upon 
the  same  general  plan  and  governed  by  rules  and  regulations 
similar  to  those  adopted  by  the  Marine  societies  of  Boston 
and  Salem.  Nov.  13,  1772,  a  letter  of  thanks  was  addressed 
to  Capt.  Bartholomew  Putnam  of  Salem  "  for  his  kindness  in 
procuring  a  copy  of  the  Marine  laws  at  Salem,  and  also  for 
a  copy  of  the  by-laws  "  ;  and  subsequent  communications  show 
that  all  three  societies  were  united  and  active  in  their  efforts 
to  foster  and  encourage  commerce  and  render  navigation 
along  the  coast   less   difficult   and   dangerous. 

At  the  second  meeting  of  the  Newburyport  society  it  was 
"  Voted  that  all  expenses  at  meetings  shall  be  paid  by  each 
member  individually  and  not  by  the  society  "  ;  and  Dec.  2, 
1772,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  apply  to  the  General 
Court  for  an  act  of  incorporation.  For  some  reason  unknown 
this  petition,  presented  in  behalf  of  the  society,  was  not 
granted,  and  another  committee  was  appointed  for  the  same 
purpose  in  1773,  and  still  another  in  1777.  The  last  com- 
mittee, consisting  of  Captain  Michael  Hodge,  Captain  James 
Hudson,  and  Captain  William  Coombs,  were  successful  in 
their  efforts,  and  the  following  act  of  incorporation  was 
granted  (3ct.  13,  1777. 


588  OULD    XEIVBUNY 

"An  act  to  incorporate  James  Hudson,  and  others  therein  named,  into 
a  society  by  the  name  of  the  Marine  Society  at  Newburyport,  in  the 
County  of  Essex,  in  the  State  of  Massachusetts  (Bay)  in  New  England. 
Whereas,  a  considerable  number  of  persons  who  are  or  have  been 
masters  of  shijjs,  or  other  vessels,  have  for  several  years  past  associated 
themselves  in  the  town  of  Newburyport.  and  the  principal  end  of  said 
Society  being  to  improve  the  knowledge  of  this  coast,  by  the  several 
members,  upon  their  arrival  from  sea,  communicating  their  observations, 
inwards  and  outwards,  of  the  variation  of  the  needle,  soundings,  courses, 
distances,  and  all  other  remarkable  things  about  it,  in  writing,  to  be 
lodged  with  the  Society,  for  making  the  navigation  more  safe ;  and  also 
to  relieve  one  another  and  their  families,  in  poverty,  or  other  adverse 
accidents  of  life,  which  they  are  more  particularly  liable  to,  and  have  for 
this  end  raised  a  considerable  common  stock ;  and  the  said  persons  asso- 
ciated, as  aforesaid,  finding  themselves  under  difficulties  and  discourage- 
ments, in  carrying  on  the  said  designs  without  an  incorporation  :  and 
James  Hudson,  and  others  of  them  having  petitioned  the  great  and 
General  Court  of  this  State,  in  their  present  session,  to  be  incorporated 
for  the  purposes  aforesaid  :  and  their  intention  appearing  laudable  and 
deserving  encouragement, — 

"  Be  it  enacted  by  tlie  Council  and  House  of  Representatii'cs  in  General 
Court  assembled,  and  by  t/ie  authority  of  tlie  same, 

"  Section  i.  That  James  Hudson.  Thomas  Jones,  Jonathan  Parsons, 
William  Friend,  Samuel  Newhall,  Michael  Hodge,  David  Coats,  William 
Stickney,  William  Noyes,  Joseph  Stanwood,  Moses  Hale,  William  P. 
Johnson,  Nathaniel  Nowell,  Joseph  Noyes,  Henry  Friend,  Joseph  New- 
man, Nicholas  Johnson,  Moses  Brown,  James  Johnson.  William  Wyer, 
William  Nichols,  the  members  of  said  Society,  be  incorporated  and 
made  a  body  politic  for  the  purposes  aforesaid,  by  the  name  of  the 
Marine  Society  at  Newburyport  in  New  England:  and  that  they,  their 
associates  and  successors,  have  perpetual  succession  by  said  name,  and 
have  a  power  of  making  by-laws,  for  the  preservation  and  advancement 
of  said  body,  not  repugnant  to  the  laws  of  the  government,  with  penalty, — 
either  of  disfranchisement  from  said  Society  or  of  a  mulct  not  exceeding 
twenty  shillings, —  or  without  penaltys.  as  it  shall  seem  most  meet  ;  and 
have  leave  likewise  to  make  and  appoint  their  common  seal ;  and  be 
liable  to  be  sued,  and  enable  to  sue,  and  make  purchases,  and  take 
donations  of  real  and  personal  estate  for  tlic  jjurposes  aforesaid,"  etc. 

Captain  William  Davenport,  the  landlord  of  the  Wolfe 
Tavern,  died  Sept.  2,  1773.  In  the  records  of  the  society  is 
the  following  announcement  :  "  No  meeting  this  month  by 
reason  of  M''  Daven):)ort  laying  Dead  in  the  House." 

After  Anthon)',   the  son   of  William    Dax'cnport.  had  been 


NEIVBUKYPORT  MARnVE   SOCIETY  589 

duly  licensed  inn-keeper,  the  society  again  voted  to  hold  its 
meetings  at  the  tavern.  Gradually  its  entertainments  be- 
came more  expensive  and  elaborate.  Oct.  31,  1782,  the  so- 
ciety "voted  to  provide  a  supper  for  the  next  annual  meet- 
ing." Oct.  27,  1785,  the  same  vote  was  repeated  ;  but,  Nov. 
30,  I  J'^6,  it  was  "  voted  to  provide  a  dinner  for  the  next  an- 
nual meeting,  instead  of  a  supper  as  has  been  customary." 
And  twenty  years  later,  after  the  tavern  had  passed  into  the 
hands  of  Prince  Stetson,  the  Ncivbiiryport  Herald,  under  the 
date  of  Dec.  1 1,  1807,  makes  the  following  announcement  :  — 

The  Newburyport  Marine  Society  celebrated  their  anniversary  yes- 
terday at  the  Gen.  Wolfe  tavern,  and  partook  of  a  well  provided  dinner 
prepared  by  Mr.  Stetson. 

Captain  Jonathan  Parsons,  Jr.,  was  the  first  president  of 
the  society.  He  resigned,  however,  after  one  week  of  ser- 
vice, and  Captain  James  Hudson  was  chosen  to  fill  the 
vacancy  Nov.  20,  1772.  Captain  Hudson  was  annually 
re-elected  to  that  office  until  Nov.  29,  1781. 

In  September,  1774,  the  inhabitants  of  Newbury  and  New- 
buryport were  active  and  earnest  in  their  efforts  to  aid  and 
encourage  the  American  colonies  in  the  approaching  struggle 
with  Great  Britain. 

Among  the  independent  companies  formed  was  one  by  the  Marine 
Society  of  Newburyport,  then  but  two  years  old,  and  consisting  of 
seventy-six  persons,  who  formed  themselves  into  a  Company,  called  the 
Independent  Marine  Company,  with  Capt.  James  Hudson  as  their  Com- 
mander. Their  colors  were  expressive  not  only  of  their  profession,  but 
combined  the  insignia  of  the  State,  and  their  sentiments  in  regard  to 
war ;  the  standard  being  a  blue  anchor  on  a  red  field,  supported  by  a 
pine  tree  and  olive  branch.  One  excellent  rule  they  adopted,  viz  :  — 
that  every  neglect  of  duty  by  an  officer  should  be  subject  to  double 
the  penalty  imposed  on  a  private. —  History  of  Neivbioy port,  by  Mrs. 
E.    Vale  Sinith,  page  82. 

In  1779,  a  committee  appointed  by  the  society  made  a 
survey  of  some  dangerous  ledges  in  the  vicinity  of  Great 
Boar's  Head,  and  published  in  nautical   books  and  charts  the 


ArEWBURYrORT  MARIA'E  SOCIETY  591 

information  they  had  obtained  for  the  benefit  of  navigators 
along  the  coast. 

In  1783,  they  erected  two  beacons  on  Plum  Island  to  serve 
as  landmarks  for  the  guidance  of  vessels  during  the  day  ; 
and  they  also  provided,  with  the  assistance  of  some  of  the 
Newburyport  merchants,  for  the  maintenance  of  lights  at 
night  until  light-houses  were  erected  at  the  expense  of  the 
national  government. 

In  1787,  the  society  erected  two  small  houses  on  Plum 
Island  to  shelter  shipwrecked  mariners  and  protect  them 
from  dangers  to  which  they  were  exposed.  The  houses 
were  destroyed  after  some  years  of  service  ;  but  more  com- 
modious and  substantial  ones  have  recently  been  erected  by 
the  United  States  government  and  placed  under  the  care 
and  control  of  life-saving  crews,  who  are  always  ready  to 
render  assistance  in  case  of  danger  or  disaster. 

The  Newburyport  Marine  Society  has  invested  funds  to 
the  amount  of  $50,000,  and  also  owns  a  brick  building  on 
State  Street  nearly  opposite  Middle  Street.  In  the  second 
story  of  this  building  the  regular  business  meetings  of  the 
Society  are  held,  and  the  third  story  is  occupied  with  a  col- 
lection of  curiosities  gathered  from  all  parts  of  the  world. 
In  this  ethnological  and  zoological  collection  are  household 
utensils  illustrating  the  home  life  of  the  early  New  Eng- 
land settlers,  old  portraits  and  Revolutionary  relics,  coins 
and  medals,  stuffed  birds,  fish  and  reptiles,  manuscripts,  log- 
books and  nautical  journals,  marine  paintings  and  models  of 
naval  architecture,  "  bric-a-brac  and  curios "  from  Manila, 
China,  and  Japan,  all  arranged  in  cases  or  displayed  upon 
the  walls.  Visitors  are  admitted  free  from  ten  to  twelve 
o'clock  A.  M.,  and  from  two  to  four  p.  m.  daily,  Sundays 
excepted. 

The  collection  is  not  large  and  no  attempt  has  been  made 
at  classification  ;  but,  if  those  who  have  articles  of  historic 
value  would  present  them  to  the  society, —  especially  paint- 
ings, engravings,  and  models  of  ships,  and,  in  fact,  everything 
that  relates  to  commercial  life  and  progress, —  the  gifts  would 


592  OULD   iXEWBURY 

be  gratefully  received  and  the  collection  itself  would  be  made 
still  more  interesting  and  attractive. 

For  more  than  a  century  the  society  was  in  a  prosperous 
and  flourishing  condition,  but  the  membership  is  now  con- 
stantly decreasing.  The  decline  in  American  commerce  has 
very  materially  reduced  the  number  of  ship-masters  who  are 
eligible  and  qualified  to  take  the  places  made  vacant  by  death 
and  other  causes.  But  the  society  still  continues  its  chari- 
table work,  and  annually  distributes  the  income  from  its 
invested  funds  for  the  benefit  and  support  of  those  mem- 
bers, and  widows  of  deceased  members,  who  may  be  sick 
or  destitute. 


ESSEX-MERRIMACK   BRIDGE. 


In  the  year  1790,  travelers  on  their  way  from  Newbury 
and  Newbiiryport  to  Salisbury  and  Amesbury  crossed  the 
Merrimack  River  by  March's  ferry  at  the  foot  of  State 
Street,  by  Hook's  ferry  at  the  foot  of  Moulton's  hill,  oppo- 
site the  mouth  of  the  Powow  River,  or  by  Webster  and 
Swasey's  ferry  in  the  vicinity  of  Bartlett's  cove.  The  ferry 
at  Carr's  island,  long  before  that  date,  had  fallen  into  disuse 
and  was  practically  abandoned  on  account  of  its  remoteness 
from  the  regular  line  of  travel. 

In  1 79 1,  active  efforts  were  made  by  some  of  the  inhabi- 
tants of  Newbury  and  Newburyport  to  organize  a  company 
for  the  purpose  of  building  a  bridge  from  Newbury  to  Deer 
Island  and  thence  to  the  Salisbury  shore.  The  following 
subscription  paper  was  circulated  and  signed  by  the  persons 
whose  names  are  affixed  :  — 

Newbury   Port,  May  30,  1791. 

Whereas  a  bridge  over  the  Merrimack  River  from  the  land  of  the 
Hon.  Jonathan  Greenleaf  in  Newbury  to  Deer  Island,  and  from  said 
Island  to  Sahsbury,  would  be  of  very  extensive  utiHty  by  affording  a 
safe  Conveyance  to  Carriages,  Teams,  and  Travellers  at  all  Seasons  of 
the  year  and  at  all  Times  of  the  Tide. 

We,  the  subscribers,  do  agree  that  as  soon  as  a  convenient  Number 
of  Persons  have  subscribed  to  this,  or  a  similar  writing,  we  will  present 
a  petition  to  the  Hon'ble  General  Court  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Mas- 
sachusetts, praying  for  an  act  incorporating  into  a  body  politic  the  sub- 
scribers to  said  W'riting  with  liberty  to  build  such  bridge  and  a  right  to 
demand  a  toll  equal  to  that  received  at  Maiden  bridge  and  on  like 
terms ;  and  if  such  an  Act  shall  be  obtained,  then  we  severally  agree 
each  with  the  others  that  we  will  hold  in  the  said  bridge  the  several 
shares  set  against  our  respective  names,  the  whole  in  two  hundred 
shares  being  divided,  and  that  we  will  pay  such  sums  of  money  at  such 


594  OULD  NEWBURY 

times  and  in  such  manners  as,  by  the  said  proposed  Corporation,  shall 
be  directed  and  required. 

S.  L.  Tyler,  20  shares  ;  Dudley  A.  Tyng,  1 5  shares  ;  Stephen  Hooper 
for  Miss  Sarah  Roberts,  Nath'l  Carter,  Jr.,  Tristram  Dalton,  Timothy 
Dexter,  Edward  Rand,  George  Searle,  Joseph  Tyler,  and  M.  Brown, 
each  10  shares. 

Andrew  and  B.  Frothingham.  Thomas  Cary,  and  W.  Combs,  each 
6  shares. 

W'"  Wyer  and  Stephen  Hooper  as  guardian  to  Thomas  W.  Hooper, 
each  5  shares. 

Richard  Pike,  Joseph  Swazey,  E.  Sawyer,  James  Prince,  Thomas 
White  and  Sam.  Bailey,  each  4  shares. 

Joshua  Toppan.  Joseph   Cutter  and  Hannah  Dummer,  each  3  shares. 

Elizabeth  Roberts,  VV"'  Teel,  W"'  H.  Prout,  W'"  H.  Prout,  Jr., 
Tristram  Coffin,  Steph.  Cross,  Nathaniel  Healy,  True  Kimball,  Samuel 
Gerrish  and  Jacob  Brown,  each  2  shares. 

Moses  Hoyt,  Daniel  Horton,  Rob't  Long,  W'"  Ingalls,  John  Mycall, 
S.  Emerson,  E.  Wheelwright.  E.  Titcomb,  J.  Burroughs,  Jere  Pearson 
and  Jon.  Marsh,  each  one  share. 

To  meet  the  preliminary  expenses,  an  assessment  of  six 
shillings  per  share  was  levied  upon  the  stockholders  of  the 
corporation  and  made  payable  July  i  i,  1791. 

Coffin,  in  his  History  of  Newbury,  under  date  of  June  i, 
1 79 1,  says:  "Nathaniel  Carter  of  Newburyport  and  eight 
others  petitioned  for  liberty  to  build  a  bridge  over  Merrimac 
river  at  Deer  Island." 

A  map  of  the  river  and  the  islands  in  the  immediate 
vicinity  of  the  proposed  bridge  was  prepared  and  j^resented 
with  the  petition  to  the  General  Court.  On  the  opposite 
page  the  reader  will  find  a  copy  of  this  map  taken  from  the 
original  drawing  now  on  file  at  the  State  House  in   Boston. 

Nov.  4,  1 79 1,  the  town  of  Newbury  voted  to  oppose  the 
construction  of  the  bridge,  and  November  30  reconsidered 
that  vote;  and  again,  December  15,  reconsidered  their  recon- 
sideration, and  instructed  their  representatives  to  oppose  the 
incorporation  of  the  company.  In  January,  1792,  the  town 
sent  a  long  remonstrance  to  the  Cieneral  Court  objecting  to 
the  pr()i)osed  obstruction  of  the  navigation  of  the  river. 

Notwithstanding  this  strong  opposition,  an  act  of  incorpora- 
tion   was    passed    I'Y'b.  24,  1792,  with  an    additional  act,  June 


ESSEX-MERRlMACk'  BRIDGE 


595 


22,  1792,  modifying  the  restrictions  and  limitations  of  the 
first  act,  as  regards  length  of  arch,  height  above  high  water 
mark,  width  of  draw,  etc.  New  and  original  plans  submitted 
by  Timothy  Palmer,  of  Newburyport,  a  skilful  and  ingenious 
mechanic  of  that  time,  were  accepted  by  the  stockholders  of 
the  corporation  and  the  work  of  construction,  under  the  direc- 
tion of  William  Coombs,  was  promptly  executed  and  the 
bridge  opened  to  the  public  Nov.  26,  1792. 


Salishary 


LartAing 


■^o'''' 


,1"^ 


,^^. 


'^^. 


»To 


i„tc£  Recks 


Scale. 
J  2.  r^^ds  /<?  inch. 
JosBPH  SoJlfe^BY,  Sur. 

June  6,  •79'- 


Grove 


IVewbury 


MAP    SHOWING    LOCATION    ESSEX-MERRIMACK    BRIDGE. 


It  was  built  of  wood,  with  heavy  timbers  forming  an  arch, 
or  arches,  resting  on  piers,  on  either  side  of  Deer  Island,  and 
extending  to  the  Newbury  and  to  the  Salisbury  shores. 

The  principles  upon  which  it  was  constructed  were  novel 
and  hitherto  untested  ;  but  the  beauty  and  strength  of  the 
structure,  when  completed,  demonstrated  their  practical  value 
and  utility.  A  portion  of  the  bridge,  extending  from  Deer 
Island  to  the  Salisbury  shore,  remained  in  use  until  1882, 
when  it  was  superseded  by  the  new  iron  bridge  now  standing 
there.      The   other   section,    however,    connecting  the  island 


ESSEX-.MERRIMACK  BRIDGE  597 

with  the  Newbury  shore,  was  removed  in  18 10  and  replaced 
by  a  chain  suspension  bridge.  This  step  was  doubtless  ren- 
dered necessary  by  the  strong  and  forcible  expressions  of  dis- 
satisfaction among  the  boatmen  on  the  river  at  the  alleged 
obstruction  of  navigation  by  the  projecting  piers  that  sup- 
ported the  long  and  heavy  wooden  arch. 

The  half-tone  print  on  the  opposite  page,  taken  from  the 
"  Massachusetts  Magazine  and  Monthly  Museum  for  May, 
1793,  Printed  at  Boston  by  Isaiah  Thomas  and  Ebenezer  T. 
Andrews,  45  Newbury  Street,"  gives  a  full  view  of  the  bridge 
as  it  was  at  that  date,  while  the  engraving  on  page  598,  taken 
from  an  old  and  rare  book  printed  in  Charleston,  S.  C,  in 
1794  by  Harrison  &  Hume  for  John  Drayton,  a  resident  of 
that  city,  evidently  represents  only  that  portion  of  the  bridge 
which  connects  Deer  Island  with  the  Newbury  shore. 

A  brief  description  of  the  drawing  in  the  JMassachiisctts 
Magazine  reads  as  follows  : — 

Essex  Merrimack  River  Bridge  contains  upwards  of  six  thousand 
tons  of  timber ;  and  is  formed  of  several  arches  and  solid  piers,  the 
dimensions  of  which  are  as  follows,  viz.  Abutment  on  the  Salisbury 
shore  124  feet;  water  course,  50;  pier,  45  ;  water  course,  60;  pier,  50; 
draw,  40 ;  pier,  50;  arch,  113;  abutment  on  the  north  shore  of  Deer 
Island,  60;  abutment  on  the  south  shore  of  Deer  Island,  93;  arch, 
160  ;  abutment  on  the  Newbury  shore,  185  ;  whole  length  of  the  bridge, 
1,030;  width  of  the  bridge,  34;  average  depth  of  the  water  at  high 
water  mark,  30 ;  height  of  the  arch  between  Newbury  and  Deer  Island 
above  common  high  water  mark,  37  ;  height  of  abutment  above  common 
high  water  mark,  30.  .  .  . 

The  two  large  arches  (one  of  which  is  superior  to  anything  of  the 
kind  on  the  continent)  were  both  of  them  invented  by  Mr.  Timothy 
Palmer,*  an  ingenious  house  wright  of  Newburyport,  and  appear  to 
unite  elegance,  strength  and  firmness  beyond  the  most  sanguine 
expectation. 

*He  was  a  native  of  Boxford,  Mass.  His  wife,  Anna,  died  July  21,  1786,  in  the  thirty-second 
year  of  her  age.  He  died  Dec.  19,  1S21,  aged  seventy.  They  were  both  hiterred  in  the  Old  Hill 
burying  ground,  Newburyport. 

In  \.\\e.  New  Englntid  Fai/adiuiii  ior  Dec.  25,  1821,  is  the  following  obituary  sketch:  "In 
Newburyport,  Mr.  Timothy  Palmer,  age  70,  for  many  years  a  sur\'eyor  of  the  highways  in  New- 
buryport, and  long  distinguished  for  his  taste  and  skill  in  the  erection  of  bridges.  Among  the 
proofs  of  his  merit  in  this  respect  it  is  sufficient  to  refer  to  the  bridges  on  the  Schuylkill,  the 
Potomac  and  the  Merrimack,  which  he  designed,  and  whose  erection  he  superintended,  especially 
the  first  bridge  over  the  Merrimack;  and  Newburyport  will  always  have  cause  to  be  grateful  to 
him  for  improving  and  beautifying  its  streets." 


598 


OULD   XEWBURY 


John  Dra)'t()n,  in  his  journc)'  throu^t^h  New  England,  passed 
over  this  bridge,  and  in  his  book  says  :  — 

Two  or  three  miles  beyond  Newburyport  is  a  l)eautiful  wooden  l)rid^e 
of  one  arch,  thrown  across  the  Merrimac  river,  whose  length  is  i6o  feet, 
and  whose  height  is  40  feet  above  the  level  of  high  water.  For  beauty 
and  strength  it  has  certainly  no  equal  in  America,  and  I  doubt  whether 
as  a  wooden  bridge  there  be  any  to  compare  with  it  elsewhere.  The 
strength  of  the  bridge  is  much  increased  above  the  common  mode  in 
use  by  pieces  of  timber  placed  upon  it  and  shouldered  into  each  other. 
They  run  upon  the  bridge  in  three  lines  parallel  with  the  length  of  the 
bridge  and  with  each  other,  so  as  to  make  two  distinct  passage  ways  for 
carriages.      These  braces  are  some  feet  in  height,  and  are  connected  on 


LONG   ARCH   OF   ESSEX-MERRIMACK    BRIDGE. 


the  top  by  cross  pieces,  affording  sufficient  room  for  carriages  to  pass 
underneath  without  inconvenience.  It  is  said  that  the  upper  work  has 
as  great  a  tendency  to  support  the  weight  of  the  bridge  as  the  sleepers 
upon  which  it  is  ])uilt.  I  liad  not  time  to  stay  there  longer  than  five 
minutes,  so  must  ])e  excused  in  a  sketch  wliicli  1  have  taken  of  it,  and 
that  was  not  done  upon  the  spot,  but  only  by  recollection.  If  in  so 
doing  I  should  persuade  others  to  incpiire  more  particularly  respecting 
it,  and  to  adopt  what  may  be  good  in  its  mechanism,  my  object  will  be 
gratified.  The  river  over  which  it  is  Ijuilt  is  suliject  to  freshets:  it  is 
therefore  high  from  the  general  current  of  tlie  water,  and  as  being 
proper  for  that,  1  ai)prehend  would  not  lie  unsuitable  to  similar  rivers  in 
Carolina. 

The    treastirer's    books    show    that    the    total    cost   ot    the 
bridge  was  X  10,919  Js.,  eciiial   to  $36,397.90   at    that   time. 


ESSEX-MEN K /MA CK  BRIDGE 


599 


William  Coombs  was  paid  ^300  for  his  services  as  superin- 
tendent. 

The  first   dividend,   22s.  per  share,   was  declared  Feb.  25, 
1793,  and  paid  to  the  following  persons  :  — 


Edmund  Sawyer 

3  shs 

John  O'Brien 

2  shs 

Cieorge  Searle 

8    - 

Joseph  Cutler 

3      " 

Joseph  Tyler 

8    " 

Enoch  Sawyer,  Jr. 

I      " 

Searle  &  Tyler 

I    " 

Timothy  De.xter 

30     " 

Edward  Rand 

3    " 

John  Burrough 

I      •' 

Nathan  Hoyt 

I    " 

Jonathan  Smith 

I      " 

William  Coombs 

4    " 

Ezekiel  Evans 

I      " 

Gorhani  Parsons 

2    ^' 

Joshua  Toppan 

I      » 

Eben  Wheelwright 

I    " 

Samuel  Eliot 

14     " 

Dudley  A.  Tyng 

I    " 

Richard  Pike 

3     " 

Jonathan  Marsh 

I    " 

John  Pettingell 

6     " 

Joseph  Stockman 

I    •' 

Tristram  Coffin 

14     " 

Edward  W^igglesworth 

I    " 

John  Coffin  Jones 

9     " 

William  Wyer 

2    " 

Robert  McGregor 

2     " 

Nathaniel  Carter 

15    - 

William   Smith 

6     " 

Nathaniel  Carter  Jr. 

I    •• 

Benjamin  Joy 

I     " 

Mrs.   Elizabeth   Roberts 

2    ** 

Oliver  Wendell 

2     ^' 

Moses  Brown 

5    " 

Lady  Elizabeth  Temple  3     •• 

Thomas  Cary 

6    " 

Thomas  Dickerson 

20 

William   Bartlett 

5    " 

John  Amory 

6     " 

Jeremiah  Pearson 

I    '• 

Moses  M.  Hays 

I      " 

Daniel  Horton 

I    " 

127     " 

73  shs 

73     " 

The  total  amount  received  for  tolls  for  the  year  ending 
Nov.  27,  1793,  was  ^801,  and  the  average  receipts  for  the 
next  ten  or  fifteen  years  were  in  excess  of  $4,000  per  annum. 
Timothy  Dexter  added  to  his  stock  in  the  corporation  from 
year  to  year,  until,  at  the  time  of  his  death  in  1 806,  he  was 
the  owner  of  one  hundred  and  ten  shares. 

The  forty-eighth  dividend  was  paid  in  May,  1807.  The 
forty-ninth  was  not  declared  until  November,  18 10,  and  was 
made  payable  Feb.  23,  181 1.  The  long  interval  between 
these  two  dividends  was  undoubtedly  occasioned  by  heavy 
expenditures  for  needed  repairs  and  also  by  a  desire  to  retain 
in  the  treasury  funds  sufficient  to  meet  the  cost  on  some  con- 
templated improvements. 


ESSEX-MERKIMACK  BRIDGE  6oi 

The  construction  of  a  suspension  bridge  from  Newbury  to 
Deer  Island,  in  accordance  with  plans  furnished  by  James 
Finley,  of  Fayette  County,  Penn.,  was  considered  and  favor- 
ably reported  upon  by  a  committee  of  the  stockholders  early 
in  1810.  The  Ncxvburyport  Herald  for  Dec.  14,  18 10,  con- 
tains the  following  announcement  of  the  completion  of  the 
work  :  — 

The  chain  bridge,  recently  thrown  over  the  Merrimac,  three  miles 
from  this  town,  is  now  open  for  the  accommodation  of  travellers.  As 
the  principles  and  mode  of  its  construction  are  novel  in  this  part  of  the 
country,  (being  the  first  of  the  kind  erected  east  of  the  Schuylkill),  a 
particular  description  may  be  interesting  to  some  readers.  It  consists 
of  a  single  arch  of  240  feet  span,  and  40  feet  at  its  greatest  elevation 
from  the  water.  The  abutments,  49  .x  25  feet  at  the  base,  45  x  20  feet  at 
the  top,  and  37  feet  high,  are  constructed  entii'ely  of  rough  and  split 
stone,  the  latter  of  which  is  used  in  the  exterior  walls,  each  stone  vary- 
ing from  one-half  to  two  and  one-half  tons  in  weight,  and  from  3  to  14 
feet  in  length,  connected  together  and  secured  by  iron  bolts.  The  whole 
quantity  of  stone  is  4,000  tons.  On  the  abutments  at  each  side  of  the 
river,  framed  piers  or  uprights  are  erected,  of  a  sufficient  height,  and 
capped  with  stout  timber  to  support  the  chains,  from  which  the  flooring 
of  the  bridge  is  supported.  The  chains,  ten  in  number,  are  passed  over 
the  caps  of  the  uprights,  and  extended  or  slackened  so  as  to  pass  under 
the  two  middle  cross  joists  of  the  flooring  and  to  describe  a  sinking  or 
curve,  the  entire  distance  of  which,  from  a  right  line,  is  one-seventh  part 
of  the  span ;  these  are  tripled  where  they  bend  over  and  rest  upon  the 
caps;  are  each  516  feet  in  length  and  256  feet  along  the  curve  line 
between  the  uprights.  The  ends  descend  from  the  uprights,  (with  an 
angle  of  the  same  inclination  that  the  curve  makes  inwards),  to  a  space 
below  the  surface  of  the  ground,  and  there  secured  sufficiently  to  coun- 
terbalance the  bridge  of  any  possible  weight  that  may  be  brought 
thereon.  The  whole  quantity  of  iron  used  in  chains,  securities,  etc.,  is 
22  tons.  The  two  middle  cross  joists  of  the  flooring  rest  upon  the 
chains,  and  the  other  joists  are  attached  to  them  in  nearly  a  horizontal 
line  by  suspenders  from  the  curve.  On  the  joists  the  string-pieces  are 
laid  lengthwise,  which  receive  the  plank.  The  whole  flooring  admits 
two  passages,  1 5  feet  wide,  rises  3  feet  in  the  centre,  is  firmly  connected 
and  strengthened  by  a  stout  railing,  and  has  a  very  light  and  agreeable 
appearance.  Horses  with  carriages  may  pass  upon  a  full  trot  with  very 
little  perceptible  motion  of  the  Bridge.  The  whole  weight  of  flooring, 
chains,  suspenders,  etc.,  commonly  supported,  does  not  exceed  100  tons, 
transient  weight,  the  third  part  of  which  it  is  presumed  can  never  be 
brought  upon  the  bridge   at   the  same  time.     The  total  cost  is  about 


ESSEX-MERKIMACK  BRIDGE  603 

$25,000.  To  John  Tcmplcman,  Esq.,  of  the  Territory  of  Columbia,  the 
contractor,  under  whose  superintendence  this  work  was  constructed,  and 
for  whose  unremitting  attention,  ingenious  talents,  and  the  many  valu- 
able improvements  suggested  and  adopted  by  him  in  its  progress ;  like- 
wise to  IVIr.  Carr,  the  master  carpenter,  whose  knowledge  in  bridge  archi- 
tecture is  well-known  and  appreciated, —  the  public  are  much  indebted,  and 
we  congratulate  them  upon  the  approbation  of  all  those  who  have  viewed 
it  since  its  completion.  The  principle  upon  which  this  work  was  con- 
structed was  originally  invented  by  James  Finley,  of  Fayette  County, 
Pennsylvania,  and  patented  to  him  in  1808;  it  has  since  been  consider- 
ably improved.  As  its  chief  materials  are  iron  and  stone,  the  wood  work 
being  an  inconsiderate  part,  very  light,  and  its  mode  of  construction 
peculiar,  its  superiority  to  timber  bridges  is  obvious,  and  consists  in 
simplicity  of  construction,  durability  and  ease  and  cheapness  of  repair. 
It  is  particularly  adapted  to  the  bold  features  of  the  New  England 
States,  where  rivers  have  high,  precipitous  banks,  rapid  tides  and  deep 
waters,  and  where,  after  fair  experiment,  we  hope  to  see  it  generally 
adopted. 

Feb.  6,  1827,  the  chains,  supporting  the  span  on  the  New- 
bury side,  gave  way,  and  a  loaded  team,  with  two  men,  four 
oxen  and  one  horse,  fell,  with  the  bridge,  into  the  river  below. 
The  horse  and  men  were  saved,  but  the  oxen  were  drowned. 

After  the  accident  the  bridge  was  rebuilt  on  substantially 
the  same  plan,  but  with  additional  chains  to  strengthen  and 
support  it.  The  frame-work  and  flooring  of  the  driveway  was 
made  in  two  separate  divisions,  or  sections,  each  independent 
of  the  other.  These  sections,  placed  side  by  side,  extend 
from  the  mainland  to  the  island,-  and  are  suspended  from 
chains  expressly  constructed  for  that  purpose. 

The  bridge  was  reopened  for  public  travel  July  17,  1827, 
and  remained  under  the  care  and  control  of  the  Essex-Merri- 
mack  Bridge  Corporation  until  the  fourth  day  of  August, 
1868,  when  it  was  laid  out  as  a  public  highway  under  the 
provisions  of  an  act  passed  by  the  General  Court  in  the 
month  of  June  preceding.  Since  that  date  it  has  been  main- 
tained and  kept  in  repair  by  the  towns  of  Amesbury  and 
Salisbury  and  the  city  of   Newburyport. 

The  half-tone  print  on  page  600,  taken  from  a  negative 
made  ten  or  fifteen  years  ago,  gives  a  view  of  the  bridge  as 
seen  from  Laurel  hill.      Between  Deer  Island   and  the  Salis- 


6o4  OULD   A'EWBURY 

bury  shore,  a  portion  of  the  original  structure,  designed  by 
Timothy  Pahner,  was  tlien  standing  with  the  driveway 
covered  to  protect  it  from  the  weather.  A  few  years  later 
the  wooden  arches  and  some  of  the  piers  on  that  side  of  the 
island  were  removed  and  a  new  iron  bridge  erected. 

On  the  southerly  side,  the  long  arch,  of  two  hundred  and 
forty  feet  span,  extending  to  the  mainland  in  Newbury  (now 
Newburyport),  was  first  erected  in  1810  and  rebuilt  in  1827. 
Its  graceful  shape  and  picturesque  apj^earance  have  attracted 
considerable  attention  ;  and  students  of  history  assert  that  it 
constitutes,  in  point  of  fact,  one  of  the  first  suspension  bridges 
erected  in  America. 

The  half-tone  print  on  page  602  gives  the  outlines  and  pro- 
portions of  this  arch,  as  it  now  appears,  after  nearly  seventy 
years  of  constant  service. 


NEW   HILL  BURYING   GROUND. 


In  1799,  the  town  of  Newbiiryport  appointed  a  commit- 
tee, consisting  of  William  Bartlett,  Moses  Brown,  Abraham 
Wheelwright,  Stephen  Cross,  and  Moses  Hoyt  to  consider 
the  question  of  purchasing  a  suitable  and  convenient  piece  of 
land  for  a  burying  ground,  with  instructions  to  report  within 
one  year  the  result  of  their  deliberations. 

At  the  meeting  held  March  24,  1800,  the  report  of  this 
committee  was  "  deferred  to  some  future  time  "  ;  but,  in  the 
warrant  issued  July  7,  1800,  calling  upon  the  inhabitants  to 
assemble  for  the  transaction  of  public  business,  the  following 
article  was  inserted  :  — 

To  see  if  the  Town  will  authorize  some  person  or  persons  to  receive 
a  conveyance  of  a  piece  of  land  for  a  Burying  ground,  and  direct  the 
Treasurer  to  pay  the  money  in  behalf  of  the  Town. 

At  a  meeting  held  August  8,  1 800,  it  was  voted  that  "  the 
Treasurer  be  and  is  hereby  authorized  to  purchase  of  William 
Coffin  Little  five  acres  of  land  for  a  Burying  ground  not  to 
exceed and  receive  a  deed  of  it." 

In  book  167,  page  21,  of  the  Essex  registry  of  deeds, 
the  conveyance  of  four  acres  and  137  -^0  rods  of  land,  from 
William  Coffin  Little,  of  Amesbury,  silversmith,  and  Francis 
Little  of  Newburyport,  mariner,  to  the  town  of  Newburyport, 
is  recorded,  and  the  consideration  named  therein  is  $970. 
The  bounds  and  limits  of  this  lot  of  land  are  described  as 
follows  :  — 

Beginning  at  the  northerly  corner  of  said  lot  by  a  street  or  way 
formerly  called  West  India  Lane,  now  called  Hill  street,  south  12°  east, 
22  rods  8  in.  by  said  street,  thence  south  7°  west,  4  rods  9  feet  10  in. 
by  said  street,  thence   south    20°  west.    1 1   rods   i    foot  4  in.  by  said 


jVeiv  hill  burying  ground  607 

street,  thence  south  22°  30'  west,  13  rods  2  feet  7  in.  by  said  street, 
thence  north  70°  west,  20  rods  i  2  feet,  by  land  purchased  by  Anthony 
Davenport,  thence  north  23°  east,  45  rods,  by  land  of  Anthony  Daven- 
port, thence  north  79°  east,  5  rods  and  9  feet,  by  the  road  to  the  bound 
begun  at. 

Reserving  out  of  the  land  above  described  about  five  rods  at  the 
westerly  corner  and  bounded  three  rods  on  said  Davenport's  land 
westerly,  and  two  rods  by  the  road  down  to  the  pastures,  in  which 
reserve  there  are  now  several  graves,  and  the  said  five  rods  are  to 
remain  for  a  burying  place  forever. 

The  five  rods  .specially  reserved,  and  the  remainder  of  the 
land  conveyed  by  the  above-mentioned  deed,  have,  since  the 
year  1800,  formed  a  part  of  the  New  Hill  burying  ground. 
It  is  evident  that  the  burials  referred  to  in  the  preceding 
paragraph  were  made,  within  a  limited  area  near  the  corner 
of  Hill  and  Pond  streets,  long  before  the  land  was  purchased 
by  the  town  of  Newburyport,  and  some  of  them  even  before 
the  town  itself  was  incorporated. 

The  oldest  stone  now  standing  there  was  erected  to  the 
memory  of  "  Sarah  Little  ye  dater  of  John  Sz:  Temperance 
Little,  who  died  Jan.  30,  1735."  The  next  in  point  of  age 
marks  the  grave  of  "  William  Coffin  Ripp,  son  of  Mr.  William 
Ripp,  who  died 12,  1739." 

Other  stones  in  that  immediate  vicinity  bear  the  following 
inscriptions  :  — 

Here  lies  buried  the  body  of  M''  William  Ripp,  who  died  July  13, 
I  740,  aged  46. 

Mrs.  Temperance  Little,  widow  of  John  Little,  died  January  17,  1769, 
in  the  37"'  year  of  her  age. 

Come  mortal  man  &  cast  an  eye 
Come  read  thy  doom  &  prepare  to  die. 

Thomas  R.  Little,  eldest  son  of  William  Little  and  Mrs.  Mary  Little, 
died  July  8,  1785,  in  the  16"'  year  of  his  age. 

This  youthful  bloom  w^as  took  away 
To  ye  cold  grave  &  there  to  stay 
Till  Jesus  comes  to  summon  all 
That  ever  died  since  Adam's  fall. 


6o8  OULD   NEWBURY 

Mrs.    Apphia   Little  who  departed  this   life   October  22,  1791,  in  the 
59"'  year  of  her  age. 

John  Little  died  May  9,  1799,  in  the  79"'  year  of  his  age. 


April  19,  1870,  the  city  of  Newburyport  bought  of 
Susan  H.  Coffin  and  John  Little  and  Nancy  C,  wife  of  the 
said  John  Little,  about  four  and  one-half  acres  of  land,  with 
the  buildings  thereon,  bounded  and  described  in  a  deed  of 
conveyance  recorded  in  b6ok  795,  page  196.  May  16,  1870, 
a  portion  of  this  land,  with  a  dwelling-house  standing  upon 
the  same,  was  sold  to  Mr.  George  Haskell  (book  797,  page 
88),  and  the  limits  of  the  New  Hill  burying  ground  were 
then  extended  far  enough,  in  a  southwesterly  direction,  to 
include  the  remainder  of  the  land  piuxhased. 

Epitaphs  taken  from  tombstones  and  monuments  in  the 
New  Hill  burying  ground,  erected  to  the  memory  of  the  Rev. 
Samuel  P.  Williams,  pastor  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church, 
Rev.  Samuel  Spring,  pastor  of  the  North  Church,  Rev.  John 
Boddily  and  Rev.  John  Giles,  pastors  of  the  Second  Presby- 
terian Church,  will  be  found  printed  in  full  in  Coffin's  History 
of  Newbury,  pages  385  and  386. 

Many  of  the  men  and  women  prominent  in  the  political  or 
social  life  of  Newburyport  at  the  beginning  of  the  present 
century  are  buried  in  this  enclosure.  A  few  names  and  dates, 
gathered  from  the  memorial  tablets  that  mark  their  graves, 
are  as  follows  :  — 

Stephen  Hooper,  died  Jan.  16.  1S02.  aged  81. 

Sarah  Hooper,  wife  of  Stephen  Hooper,  died  June  26,  1779. 

Alice  Hooper,  wife  of  Stephen  Hooper,  died  May  8,  181 2. 

Joseph  Marcjuand,  died  Sept.  (1.  1820.  aged  72. 

Mrs.  Mary  Tracy,  widow  of  Hon.   Nathaniel  Tracy,  died  Oct.  31.  1810, 

aged  66. 
Capt.  Offin  Boardman,  died  Aug.  i,  181  i,  aged  63. 
Capt.  Peter  Le  Breton,  died  P^eb.  24,  181 3,  aged  67. 
Capt.  Peter  Le  Breton.  Jr.,  died  March  5.  1829,  aged  50. 
Richard  Pike,  died  June  2,  1827,  aged  60. 
John  Pettingel,  died  Oct.  26,  182S,  aged  83. 
James  Prince,  "  Collector  of  this  District."  died  May  11.  1830.  aged  75. 


A^EIV  HILL   BURYING    GROUND  609 

Mrs.  Margaret  Atwood,*  died  June  5,  1832,  aged  79. 

Leonard  Smith,  died  Aug.  4,  1842,  aged  95. 

Edmund  Bartlet,  died  May  9,  1S54,  aged  76. 

Benjamin   Gould,  "an  officer   of  the   Revolution,"   died   May  30,  1S41, 

aged  90. 
Mrs.   Grizzel  Apthorp   Gould,  wife  of    Benjamin   Gould,   died   Jan.    12, 

1827,  aged  74. 
Hannah  Flagg  Gould,  born  in   Lancaster,  Mass.,  Sept.  3,  1788;   died  in 

Newburyport.  Sept.  5,  1865. 
Caroline    Elizabeth,   daughter  of   Samuel  S.   Wilde,  and   wife  of  Caleb 

Gushing,  died  Aug.  28,  1838,  aged  30. 
Caleb  Gushing,  died  Jan.  2,  1879. 

*  Her  will  was  proved  and  allowed  in  the  probate  court  Aug.  7,  1S32.  An  extract  from  this  will 
reads  as  follows  :  — 

"After  paving  the  several  foregoing  annual  legacies  from  year  to  year  as  I  have  provided,  I 
devise,  give,  and  bequeath  to  my  executors  and  their  successors,  as  trustees  and  in  trust  forever, 
the  rest,  residue  and  remainder  of  the  income  of  all  my  estate,  to  be  by  them  paid  over  for  the 
best  interest  of  the  poor  of  the  town  of  Newburyport,  and  to  the  proper  officers  thereof." 


s^v 


BARTLET   MALL 


It  is  evident  from  a  glance  at  the  map  of  Frog  Pond  and 
vicinity  for  the  year  1700,  on  page  118,  that  all  the  desirable 
land  in  that  neighborhood  was  divided  among  the  proprietors 
of  the  town,  with  the  exception  of  a  small  area  surrounding 
the  pond.  A  portion  of  this  undivided  land  on  the  south- 
westerly side  was  subsequently  enclosed  as  a  burying  ground  ; 
and  the  uneven  and  irregular  surface  of  the  long,  narrow 
strip  on  the  northeasterly  side  of  the  pond,  next  to  the 
country  road,  was,  at  a  later  date,  graded  and  named  Bartlet 
Mall. 

As  early  as  1703  a  windmill  was  set  up  on  the  open  space 
near  the  southeastern  extremity  of  the  pond,  and  forty  or 
fifty  years  later  a  rope-walk  was  erected  at  the  northeasterly 
end  parallel  with  High  Street.  The  town  of  Newbury 
granted  John  Crocker  liberty,  March  8,  1748,  to  build  a 
roi3e-walk  "  along  by  the  windmill  and  to  improve  said  place 
for  ten  years  for  making  of  ropes  and  for  no  other  use." — 
Coffin  s  History  of  Aci^'biiiy,  p^^g^'  ~  1 8. 

Jan.  2^,  1764,  a  portion  of  the  town  of  Newbury,  less  than 
a  mile  square,  but  including  Frog  Pond  and  land  adjacent 
thereto,  was  set  apart  and  incorporated  as  a  new  town  by  the 
name  of  Newburyport. 

In  the  year  1766  measurements  were  taken,  and  in  1771  a 
plan  was  drawn  by  John  Vinal,  giving  the  bounds  and  limits 
of  the  common  and  undivided  land  in  the  vicinity  of  Frog 
Pond.  A  photographic  copy  of  this  plan,  taken  from  the 
first  volume  of  the  records  of  the  town  of  Newburyport  and 
reproduced  on  the  opposite  page,  will  assist  the  reader  in 
locating  the  old  windmill,  burying  ground,  rope-walk,  and 
other  objects  of  interest  in  that  locality. 


6i2  OULD    NEWBURY 

The  survey  was  undoubtedly  made,  by  order  of  the  select- 
men, for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  the  courses  and  distances 
named  in  the  following  official  document,  issued  Feb.  28, 
I ^66  :  — 

Laid  out  by  the  Selectmen  of  the  Town  of  Newburyport  at  the 
request  of  a  number  of  the  Inhabitants,  the  following  Tract  of  Land 
Included  within  the  line  hereafter  mentioned  as  a  Private  way  for  the 
use  of  the  Town,  viz.  beginning  at  the  corner  of  Deacon  Sam'  Somerby* 
land  towards  the  great  Pasture  gate,  not  far  from  the  burying  Hill, 
thence  running  North  Forty  Two  Degrees  East  as  the  Fence  now 
stands  to  a  notch  in  the  fence  not  far  from  D.  Somerbys  well,  thence 
North  Forty  live  degrees  East  until  it  comes  to  the  highway,  of  four 
rods  wide  called  high  Street  to  the  Northward  most  side  thereof,  thence 
South  Forty  Seven  Degrees  East,  Seventy  Two  Rods,  to  a  mark  in  the 
fence,  thence  Three  Rods,  Thirteen  feet.  Six  inches  to  the  Corner  of  the 
fence.  Then  beginning  at  Deacon  Somerby  Corner  before  mentioned, 
and  thence  running  South  Seventy  Eight  Degrees  East  to  the  Corner  of 
burying  hill  fence,  thence  running  across  the  way  there  to  a  mark  in  the 
fence,  owned  by  John  Little,  thence  North  East  crossing  a  nother  way 
to  Land  in  Newbury  owned  by  Richard  Greenleaf  Esq.,  thence  North 
East  Seventy  Eight  Degrees  East,  nineteen  Rods,  thence  South  Thirty 
four  Degrees  East,  thence  as  the  fence  stands  to  the  Garden  spot 
improved  by  Nath'  Willet,  and  so  round  the  same,  as  the  fence  stands, 
thence  South,  Eighty  five  Degrees  East  Twenty  four  Rods,  thence 
South  Eighty  Three  Degrees  East  Eleven  Rods,  and  so  across  the 
Road  to  the  corner  A  mentioned  in  the  annexed  plan, —  all  the  land 
Included  in  the  Lines,  covered  or  not  covered,  excepting  a  Tract  of 
Land  containing  about  one  hundred  &  Thirty  four  Rods  with  a  House 
on  it  now  owned  by  Stephen  Hooper,  also  excepting  the  King's  High- 
way, called  High  street,  of  four  Rods  wide, —  wee  lay  out  as  a  way  for 
the  use  of  the  Town.  The  Annexed  is  a  Plan  of  the  same.  Laid  out 
this  28"'  of  February  A.D.  1766,  By  us. 

Dan.i-  Farnham    1         Seh'ct//u')! 
John   Berrey         i>  of 

Cutting   Moody  J     Xcuiluiryport. 

March  8,  1774,  the  town  of  Newburyport  voted,  on  peti- 
tion of  Captain  Ralph  Cross  and  others,  to  level  the  ground  in 
the  vicinity  of  I'"rog  I'ond  in  order  to  render  it  ax'ailable  as  a 
training-field;  and,  March  9,  1779,  Nathaniel  Tracy  was 
authorized  to  plant  shade  trees  where  the  old  rope-walk 
formerly  stood.      May    16,    1781,    Stephen   Sewall,   Stephen 


BAKTLET  MALL  613 

Hooper,  Mary  Hooper,  Nathaniel  Tracy,  Nathaniel  Atkinson, 
Benjamin  Greenleaf,  Enoch,  Joshua,  and  Richard  Titcomb, 
and  the  heirs  of  the  late  Benjamin  Frothingham,  donated  the 
land  needed  to  make  a  four-rod  way  from  High  Street  to 
Merrimac  Street  between  State  and  Market  streets ;  and 
March  28,  1782,  Green  Street,  as  laid  out,  was  accepted  and 
the  plan  of  the  same  ordered  to  be  placed  on  record. 

Nearly  a  century  previous  to  the  laying  out  of  Green 
Street,  a  school-house  was  erected  in  the  vicinity  of  Frog 
Pond,  and  children  were  there  instructed  in  reading,  in 
writing,  and  in  arithmetic,  l^ver  since  that  date  the  pursuit 
of  knowledge  and  the  training  and  discipline  of  the  mind 
have  been  prominently  identified  and  intimately  associated 
with  that  neighborhood. 

March  11,  171 2,  the  town  of  Newbury  "Voted  that  a 
house  for  ye  keeping  ye  Gramer  school  in,  shall  be  bilt  and 
set  up  near  }^e  middle  waye,  between  ye  old  school  house 
&  ye  little  old  house  now  standing  by  ye  way  near  frog 
Pond  and  that  the  Gramer  schoole  master  shall  have  fifteen 
pounds  in  money  and  fifteen  pounds  as  money  for  keeping 
the  Schollers  to  learn  Lattin  &  to  write  &  cypher  for  the  year 
ensuing." 

Soon  after  the  incorporation  of  the  town  of  Newburyport 
in  1764  a  committee  was  appointed  to  provide  suitable  accom- 
modations "for  one  Grammer  School  not  far  from  the  Rev"^ 
Mr.  Lowell's  meeting  House,  and  two  reading,  writing  & 
arithmetick  schools,  one  of  them  adjoining  to  Queen  Street, 
Ordua  Lane,  or  Bartlett's  Lane,  preferring  the  latter,  and  the 
other  adjoining  or  near  Cross  Street  or  Elbow  Lane." 

In  compliance  with  this  vote,  a  building  for  the  north 
school  was  erected  on  Bartlett's  lane,  now  Winter  Street, 
and  there  for  more  than  fifty  years  the  younger  pupils  of  the 
town  were  taught  to  read,  to  write,  and  to  cipher,* 

At  a  legal  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  Newburyport,  held 

*IMay  13,  1764,  the  tov\ii  of  Newburyport  purchased  of  John  Harbut,  blockmaker,  about  nine 
and  one-lialf  rods  of  laud,  bounded  on  the  southeast  by  Bartlett's  lane,  on  the  southwest  by  land 
of  John  Lewis,  on  the  northwest  by  land  of  Hezekiah  Collins  and  Josiah  Titcomb,  and  on  the 
northeast  by  land  of  the  grantor  (Essex  Deeds,  book  115,  page  258). 

In  the  Neivburyport  Herald,  July  13,  1821,  the  town  of  Newburyport  advertised  several  lots 


6l4  OULD   NEWBURY 

March  9,  1 790,  it  was  "  voted  to  build  a  new  school  house 
for  the  north  school  to  be  kept  in  ;  voted  that  the  said  school 
house  be  placed  somewhere  near  the  Hay  scale  on  the  Town 
land  ;  voted  that  the  said  school  house  be  forty  feet  long  and 
thirty  feet  wide ;  voted  that  the  selectmen  with  the  school 
master  be  a  committee,  to  build  said  school  house  at  the 
Town's  expense." 

The  new  building  was  located  at  the  northwesterly  end  of 
Frog  Pond.  It  was  a  wooden  structure  of  modest  dimen- 
sions, but  still  sufficiently  commodious  to  meet  the  wants  and 
requirements  of  the  community  at  that  time.  It  soon,  how- 
ever, became  overcrowded  and  was  ultimately  removed  to 
make  room  for  another  building. 

May  30,  1823,  the  selectmen  of  Newburyport  were  author- 
ized "  to  build  a  new  school  house, —  instead  of  making  an 
addition  to  the  school  house  at  the  western  end  of  the  mall, — 
on  the  site  where  the  school  house  now  stands,  or  near  the 
same,  at  an  expense  not  to  exceed  eighteen  hundred  dollars 
exclusive  of  the  old  school  house  and  the  powder  house." 

Plans  were  prepared,  materials  purchased,  and  the  work  of 
construction  was  commenced  without  delay.  The  school- 
house  was  built  of  brick  and  was  ready  for  use  in  October  of 
that  year.  The  Lancastrian  or  monitorial  system  of  educa- 
tion was  then  exceedingly  popular,  and  under  the  supervision 
of  Master  Coolidge  that  plan  or  method  of  teaching  was 
adopted  and  maintained  in  the  school  for  several  years  ;  but 
the  results  were  not  satisfactory,  and  a  thorough  reorganiza- 
tion became  necessary.  Changes  were  made,  not  only  in  the 
method  of  instruction,  but  in  the  classification  and  grading  of 
the  school.  Under  the  direction  of  experienced  teachers,  it 
was  soon   brought  to  a  high  standard  of  efficiency,  and  con- 

of  land  for  salu,  and  among  them  "  a  lot  of  land  on  Winter  Street,  contaiiiinj;  about  nine  .iiid  one- 
half  rods,  with  a  building  formerly  occupied  for  a  school  house." 

Dec.  17,  1821,  the  town  of  Newburyport  gave  a  deed  of  the  above  described  land,  with  the 
building  thereon,  to  Andrew  Wilson  (book  232,  page  137). 

In  1826  Andrew  Wilson  gave  a  mortgage  deed  to  Charles  Marstes  of  house  and  land  on  a  way 
"formerly  called  Hartlett's  Lane,  now  Winter  Street"  (book  i\\,  page  113);  and  April  30,  1S27, 
he  conveyed  the  equity  in  this  jiroperty  to  Charles  Marstes  (book  244,  page  227). 

March  22,  1S33,  Charles  Marstes  sold  the  house  and  land  to  Moses  Dodge  (book  270, 
page  190). 

The  building  is  still  standing.     It  has  been  occupied  as  a  dwelling-house  since  1826. 


BARTLET  MALL 


6iS 


tinued  in   a  flourishing  condition  until  the  school-house  was 
destroyed  by  fire  in  1868. 

The  Latin-Grammar  school-house,  at  the  southeasterly  end 
of  Frog  Pond,  was  built  in  the  year  1 796  by  order  of  the 
town  of  Newburyport.  At  a  meeting  legally  called  for  that 
purpose  on  the  fourth  day  of  April,  1796,  the  town  "voted 
to   build   a   new   school   house  of   brick   nearly   of   the  same 


SCHOOL-HOUSE    AT    NORTHWESTERLY    END    OF    BARTLET    MALL. 


dimensions  of  the  north  school  house,  and  that  the  same  be 
set  at  the  southerly  end  of  the  Mall,  on  the  towns  land  near 
the  Frog  Pond." 

In  this  building,  Michael  Walsh,  author  of  Walsh's  Arith- 
metic, taught  Latin  and  Greek  from  1796  to  1803.  July  6, 
1809,  the  town  of  Newburyport  "voted  to  put  a  second  story 
on  the  Brick  school  house  in  the  Mall  to  accommodate  the 
Centre  school." 

The   addition   of  this   second   story,   when    completed   and 


6i6  OULD   NEWBURY 

viewed  from  an  architectural  standpoint,  gave  rise  to  con- 
siderable adverse  criticism.  The  height  of  the  structure, 
compared  with  its  length  and  breadth,  was  especially  notice- 
able. Notwithstanding  its  defects  and  peculiarities,  the 
remodeled  building  was  made  useful  and  serviceable  for 
many  years.  In  1831,  it  was  repaired,  and  March  5,  1832,  it 
was  reopened  for  the  accommodation  of  the  Latin  and  Eng- 
lish high  school  of  Newburyport,  under  the  charge  of  Roger 
S.  Howard*  and  David  P.  Page.f 

Mr.  Howard  retained  his  position  as  instructor  in  this 
school  until  1845,  with  the  exception  of  an  interval  of  two 
or  three  years,  when  he  was  engaged  in  teaching  a  private 
school  for  girls  in  the  Newburyport  Academy.  Mr.  Page 
resigned  in  December,  1844,  to  take  charge  of  the  State 
Normal  School  at  Albany,  N.  Y. 

In  1853,  a  more  convenient  and  commodious  building  on 
the  turnpike,  now  State  Street,  was  provided  for  the  accom- 
modation of  the  high  school.  The  two-story  brick  structure 
on  the  mall,  left  for  several  months  unoccupied,  was  subse- 
quently utilized  for  the  instruction  and  education  of  younger 

*  Mr.  Roger  S.  Howard  was  born  in  Tlietford,  Vt.,  July  20,  1807.  He  graduated  at  Dart- 
mouth College  in  1829,  and  came  to  Newburyport  soon  after  that  date.  He  married,  March  22, 
1832,  Martha,  daughter  of  Richard  and  Sarah  Pike,  of  Newbury.  She  died  at  Thetford,  Vt., 
Sept.  24,  1S49.  Mr.  Howard  w'as  then  supervisor  of  public  schools  in  the  State  of  Vermont.  After 
the  death  of  his  wife  he  removed  to  Bangor,  Me.,  and  for  nearly  ten  years  had  charge  of  the 
Fernale  high  school  tliere.  For  his  second  wife  he  married,  Aug.  iS,  1S53,  Laura  Frances, 
adopted  daughter  of  Mr.  I'.ezer  Latliam,  of  Lyme,  N.  H.  She  died  at  Bangor  March  27,  1S5.S. 
Soon  after  this  event  Mr.  Howard  was  admitted  to  orders  in  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Cluirch,  and 
in  1859  he  was  rector  of  St.  Stephen's  Church  in  Portland,  Me.  He  married,  July  19,  i860,  Mrs. 
Charlotte  P.  Jewett,  of  that  city,  for  his  third  wife.  He  subsequently  was  settled  at  Rutland  and 
at  Wood.stock,  Vt.,  and  at  the  Church  of  the  Reconciliation  in  Webster,  Mass.  On  account  of 
failing  health  he  was  obliged  to  resign  his  pastoral  ofifice  in  the  autumn  of  1879.  He  removed  to 
Greenfield,  Mass.,  and  there  died  April  16,  iSSo.  He  left  a  widow  and  one  daughter  by  his  fir.st 
wife.  The  daughter  married  Hem.  Chester  C.  Conant,  judge  of  the  probate  court  in  Franklin 
County,  Massachusetts.  She  died  July  17,  1889.  Mrs.  Charlotte  (Jewett)  Howard,  widow  of  Rev. 
Roger  S.  Howard,  I).  D.,  died  in  (ireenfield  Aug.  g,  1S92. 

t  David  Perkins  Page  was  born  in  Epping,  N.  H.,  July  4,  iSio.  He  was  a  student  in  1S27 
and  1828  at  the  Hampton  Academy.  He  came  to  Newbury  when  eighteen  or  nineteen  years  of 
age,  and  taught,  during  the  winter,  in  one  of  the  district  schools  at  Byfield.  He  afterward  opened 
a  private  school  in  a  small  one-story  building  that  formerly  stood  on  Oreen  Street,  Newburj'port, 
where  the  Church  of  the  Immaculate  Conception  now  stands.  Hon.  John  N.  Pike,  of  Newbury- 
port, Moses  Coleman,  Esq.,  of  lioston,  and  others  now  lixing,  were  members  of  that  school. 

In  tlie  year  1831,  the  number  of  pujiils  had  increased  sut'tlciently  to  warrant  tlie  removal  of  the 
school  to  the  vestry,  or  chapel,  on  Harris  Street,  adjoining  tlie  Second  Presbyterian  meeting-house. 
There  Master  Page  continued  his  labors  as  instructor  until  he  was  appointed  principal  of  the  Eng- 
lish department  of  the  Newburyport  high  school.  He  married,  Dec.  16,  1832,  Susan  M.  Lunt, 
daughter  of  Micajah  and  Sarah  ((liddings)  Lunt.  He  died  iu  .Albany.  N.  \'.,  Jan.  i,  1848,  leaving 
a  widow,  two  sons,  and  two  daughters.  He  was  buried  in  Oak  Hill  cemetery  at  Newburyport, 
Mass. 


BART  LET    MALL 


617 


pupils.  In  this  way  it  was  made  serviceable  for  nearly  thirty 
years  ;  but,  at  length,  on  account  of  needed  repairs,  it  was 
again  vacated.  By  a  vote  of  the  committee  on  public  prop- 
erty, it  was  sold  at  public  auction  May  30,  1883.  A  few 
months  later  it  was  taken  down  ;  and  now  a  brick,  stamped 
with  the  figures  1 796,  an  old  weather  vane,  and  a  marble 
slab,  bearing"  the  inscription  "  Bartlet  Mall  1800,"  are  the 
only  memorials  of  the  ancient  structure  that  remain.* 


HIGH    SCHOOL    BUILDING    AT    SOUTHEASTERLY    END    OF    BARTLET    MALL. 


At  the  April  term  of  the  court  of  general  sessions  held 
in  Salem  in  the  year  1 797,  suit  was  brought  by  the  pro- 
prietors of  common  land  in  the  town  of  Newbury  against  the 
town  of  Newburyport,  stating  that  said  town  in  1771  took 
land  and  fiats,  called  the  middle  ship-yard,  and  did   not   make 

*  For  a  more  particular  account  of  the  schools  established  and  maintained  at  the  southeasterly 
and  northwesterly  ends  of  Bartlet  Mall,  the  reader  is  referred  to  a  series  of  articles,  prepared  by 
Mr.  Oliver  B.  Merrill,  published  in  the  Xewbnryport  Herald  for  Dec.  22  and  2q,  1S77,  and  Feb. 
23,    1878. 


BARTLF.r   MALL  619 

compensation  for  the  same,  and  praying  that  damages  might 
be  awarded.  Nathan  Dane  was  counsel  for  the  petitioners 
and  Theophilus  Bradbury  was  counsel  for  the  town  of 
Newburyport.  This  petition  was  dismissed  (court  records, 
page  25). 

At  the  October  term  of  the  year  1799,  another  suit  was 
brought,  in  which  the  proprietors  of  common  land  in  New- 
bury pray  that  the  way  about  Frog  Pond,  laid  out  in  1 766, 
and  the  way  at  the  middle  ship-yard,  laid  out  in  1771,  be 
discontinued  and  the  land  revert  to  the  proprietors.  This 
petition  was  dismissed  (court  records,  page  104). 

The  legal  questions  involved  in  these  suits  having  been 
disposed  of  for  the  time  being,  Captain  Edmund  Bartlet 
offered  to  fill  with  gravel  and  loam  the  deep  ravine,  near 
the  head  of  Green  Street,  and  make  an  attractive  promenade 
around  the  pond. 

June  26,  1800,  the  work  was  commenced,  and  in  Auo-ust 
of  that  year  it  was  completed.  Captain  Bartlet  contributed 
liberally  toward  the  expense  of  this  improvement,  and  the 
placed  was  named,  in  his  honor,  "Bartlet  Mall." 

Oct.  2,  1804,  the  town  of  Newburyport  "voted  unani- 
mously that  the  town  will  concur  with  the  honorable  court 
of  sessions  in  placing  a  new  court  house  on  land  between 
Frog  Pond  and  the  mall  directly  fronting  Green  Street,"  and 
in  the  year  1805  the  court  house  was  erected.  Previous  to 
this  date  the  court  held  its  sessions  in  the  town  house,  built 
in  1762,  on  the  corner  of  State  and  Essex  streets.  The 
new  edifice  was  designed  by  Bulfinch  and  was  an  imposing 
structure,  with  square  brick  columns  or  pillars  in  front  and 
the  figure  of  "Justice,"  with  evenly-balanced  scales,  standing 
above  the  entrance ;  but  all  traces  of  Bulfinch's  skill  and 
handiwork  disappeared  when  the  building  was  remodeled  in 
1853.* 

*  B'or  many  years  previous  to  this  date,  the  opening  of  the  court  was  announced  by  a  peculiar 
ringing  or  intonation  of  the  bell  on  the  Second  Presbyterian  meeting-liouse.  To  the  youthful 
members  of  the  community  it  seemed  to  say :  — 

"  Run,  boys,  runl 
The  Court's  begun  1 
Stand  'fore  the  justice 
And  tell  what  you've  done." 


620  OULD   XEWBURY 

At  the  court  of  sessions,  held  at  Salem,  Mass.,  in  July, 
1S23,  the  erection  of  a  new  jail  at  the  northwesterly  end  of 
Kartlet  Mall  was  considered  and  an  order  appropriating 
$2,000  "  for  the  purchase  of  a  lot  of  land  in  Newbur\'port 
for  the  erection  of  a  jail  in  said  town  was  passed." 

Aug.  I,  1823,  Thomas  Somerby  ct)nve}'ed  to  Essex 
County  "a  lot  of  land  in  Xewbur)'port,  bounded  north 
easterly  by  Back  Street,  south  easterly  by  road  from  High 
Street  by  burying  ground  to  Common  Pasture,  and  westerly 
and  northwesterly  by  land  of  grantor  and  others  in  common  '" 
(Essex  Deeds,  book  235,  page  306). 

At  the  (October  term  of  the  same  year  the  court  "  ordered 
that  said  jail  be  erected  on  land  recentl}'  purchased  by  the 
County  of  Essex  of  Thomas  Somerby  near  the  westerly  end 
of  the  Pond." 

At  the  July  term,  in  the  year  1825,  the  court  authorized 
the  treasurer  to  issue  notes  in  settlement  for  land,  materials, 
labor,  etc.,  "  used  in  the  construction  of  house,  barn,  jail  and 
wall  around  the  same,"  and  at  the  same  term  appointed 
Stephen  W.  ^larston  a  committee  to  sell  the  old  jail  and  pay 
over  the  net  proceeds  thereof  to  the  county  treasurer.  This 
old  place  of  imprisonment  was  then  standing  on  the  northerly 
side  of  Federal  Street  (formerly  Chandler's  lane,  afterward 
called  King  Street),  between  Prospect  Street  and  Temple 
Street.  It  was  erected  during  the  year  1744.  The  town  of 
Newbur}'  purchased  of  Anthony  Somerby  h\'b.  4,  i  743-4,  a 
lot  of  land  four  rods  wide  on  King  Street  "to  build  a  prison 
and  work  house  on  "  (Essex  Deeds,  book  88,  page  2). 

Jul}-  21,  1758.  the  town  of  Newbury  conveyed  to  the 
count}'  of  I'^ssex,  prison  house,  work  house,  and  land  under 
and  adjoining  the  same  (book  105,  page  137). 

In  1826,  the  long-protracted  controversy,  in  regard  to  the 
ownership  of  the  common  and  undivided  lands  within  the 
limits  of  the  town  of  Xewburyport,  was  satisfactoril}'  scttlctl  ; 
and,  October  28  of  that  year,  the  pro{)rietors  of  common  land 
in  Newbury,  Newburyjiort,  and  West  Xewbur}',  for  the  sum 
of   Si, 200,  gave  a  c|uitclaim    ([<^Kii\   to   the  town   of    Xewbur}'- 


1^4  A'  TL E  r    MALL  6 2  i 

ptn't  of  all  the  common  and  undivided  lands  within  the  limits 
of  Newbur)'port  :  "  Reserving  the  road  of  one  and  one  half 
rods  wide,  laid  out  on  the  easterly  side  of  the  Middle  Ship- 
yard or  Market  landing,  so  called,  from  Merrimac  Street  to 
the  River,  .  .  .  also  a  four  rod  way  at  the  southerly  end  and 
a  four  rod  way  at  the  northerly  end  of  Frog  Pond  from  the 
main  street  at  each  end  to  the  Pond  .  .  .  also  a  strip  of  land 
one  rode  wide  all  round  said  Pond  adjoining  thereto  and  on 
the  margin  thereof,  being  for  public  use  and  at  no  time  here- 
after to  be  appropriated  to  the  private  and  exclusive  rights  of 
said  inhabitants  "  (book  249,  page  200). 

In  the  year  1834,  the  broad  and  level  walk  on  the  westerly 
side  of  P'rog  Pond  was  laid  out  and  graded  by  some  of  the 
young  men  of  the  town,  and  the  embankment,  above  and 
below,  skilfully  covered  with  turf.  In  1882,  the  house-lot 
owned  by  Stephen  Hooper  in  1771  was  purchased  by  the 
city  of  Newburyport  for  the  purpose  of  extending  the  area, 
and  adding  to  the  attractiveness,  of  the  public  grounds  in 
that  vicinity. 

The  old  rail  fence  that  formerly  surrounded  the  mall 
and  pond  was  taken  down  in  1883,  and,  in  the  year  1884, 
a  granite  curbing  was  placed  around  the  enclosure.  Other 
improvements  were  proposed,  and,  under  the  direction  of 
the  Mall  Improvement  Association,  wei^  completed  during 
the  years   1888   and    1889. 

The  statue  of  Washington  at  the  south  end  of  the  mall 
was  presented  to  the  citizens  of  Newburyport  in  1879  by 
Daniel  I.  Tenney,  Esq.,  of  New  York  City  ;  and  the  bronze 
fountain  in  the  centre  of  the  pond  was  the  gift  of  Edward  S. 
Moseley,  Esq.,  in  1891. 


MARKET   SQUARE. 


From  the  settlement  of  Newbury,  in  1635,  to  the  buildint^ 
of  the  Third  Parish  meeting-house,  in  1725,  the  triangular 
piece  of  land  at  the  foot  of  Greenleaf's  lane  was  common 
land,  and  is  so  designated  on  the  map  showing  the  ownership 
of  property  in  that  vicinity  for  the  year  1700.  Subsequent 
changes,  and  transfer  of  title  to  the  town  of  Newburyport, 
are  noted  in  the  sketch  of  the  Third  Parish  on  page  443. 

In  the  month  of  September,  1801,  the  old  meeting-house 
was  taken  down,  and  the  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same 
became  public  property,  and  now  forms  what  is  known  as 
Market  Square.  This  improvement  cost  the  sum  of  S8,ooo, 
the  town  paying  $4,400,  and  individual  contributors  and 
owners  of  real  estate  in  that  locality  the  balance.  A  well 
was  dug  through  the  solid  rock  near  the  place  where  the 
old  pulpit  formerly  stood,  and  for  more  than  three-quarters  of 
a  century  a  pump  of  ample  dimensions  provided  water  to 
slake  the  thirst  of  man  and  beast. 

The  great  fire  of  181 1  swept  away  most  of  the  buildings 
then  standing  on  the  westerly  and  southerly  sides  of  the 
Sc|uare,  and  new  stores  were  afterward  erected  on  the  sites 
thus  made  vacant.  The  market-house,  now  the  police-station 
and  engine-house,  was  built  in  1823,  and  occupies  the  sjiace 
at  one  time  known  as  the  Middle  Shij^yard.  On  this  spot 
at  a  later  date  were  numerous  stalls  for  the  sale  of  butcher's 
meat  and  ])()ultr)'.  Some  years  previous  to  the  removal  of 
Re\-.  John  Lowell's  meeting-house  from  Market  Scjuarc  an 
effort  was  made  to  proxide  better  accommodations  for  the 
farmers  and  tradei's  who  were  accustomed  to  gather  in  that 
locality. 

July  2,  1795,  the   town    of   Newburyport   "voted  to  choose 


MARKET   SQUARE  623 

a  committee  of  seven  to  consider  the  proposal  made  by  Mr. 
Timothy  Dexter  to  erect  at  his  own  expense  a  handsome 
brick  building  for  a  market  house  on  the  town's  landing, 
between  Judge  Greenleaf's  and  Mr.  Andrew  Frothingham's 
land,  and  to  examine  into  the  propriety  of  the  town's  accept- 
ing the  proposal  and  report  at  the  adjourned  meeting." 

At  a  meeting  of  the  town  held  Sept.  i,  1795,  the  follow- 
ing report,  submitted  by  Hon.  Theophilus  Bradbury,  was  read 
and  accepted  :  — 

The  committee  appointed  to  consider  the  propriety  of  accepting  Mr. 
Dexter's  proposal,  beg  leave  to  report  that  they  find  that  the  land  upon 
which  said  building  is  proposed  to  be  erected  is  laid  out  and  established 
by  the  Town  as  a  public  way  or  landing,  and  are  therefore  of  the  opin- 
ion that  the  town  has  no  authority  to  permit  the  erecting  such  a  building 
thereon. 

Apparently  no  further  action  was  taken  by  the  town  in 
relation  to  the  subject  until  twenty-five  years  later.  March 
12,  1822,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  erect  a  market- 
house  under  certain  specified  conditions  and  restrictions. 
April    II,    1822,  this  committee  reported 

That  they  have  attended  to  the  subject  committed  to  them  and  find 
that,  in  the  year  1771,  the  spot  on  which  the  shambles  now  stand  was 
laid  down  by  the  selectmen  and  adopted  by  the  town  as  a  town  wav  or 
landing,  for  which  reason  they  recommend  that  the  selectmen  cause  the 
shambles  and  other  incumbrances  upon  said  landing  to  be  removed 
within  thirty  days. 

They  find  farther  that  on  the  division  of  the  water  lots  in  the  Town 
of  Newbury,  as  completed  in  the  year  1722.  certain  of  the  lots  were  left 
for  the  Towns  use,  among  which  is  the  landing  in  question,  and  that 
the  Proprietors  of  undivided  lands  in  Newbury  &  Newburyport  claim 
the  fee  of  said  landing,  the  use  and  occupation  of  which  as  a  public  way 
has  belonged  to  the  Town  of  Newbury  from  the  time  of  the  division  of 
the  water  lots  above  mentioned  until  the  incorporation  of  this  Town.  & 
since  then  to  the  Town  of  Newburvport.  On  application  to  the  Pro- 
prietors Committee  to  see  whether  they  would  consent  to  relinquish 
their  claim  on  the  aforsaid  landing,  they  refused  to  do  it,  unless  the 
Town  would  pay  them  one  thousand  dollars,  for  which  sum  they  offered 
to  give  a  quit  claim  deed,  under  certain  conditions,  of  all  the  landings 
in  Newburyport  and  other  lands  on  which  thev  pretended  to  have  a 
claim  :   and,  therefore,  although  vour  Com"  are  not  fullv  satisfied  of  the 


624  OULD    XElf/n'h'Y 

validitv  of  said  claims,  yet.  as  they  thini<  it  would  not  be  perfectly  safe 
to  place  a  building  on  land  so  situated,  which  is  l)esides  a  pul)lic  way. 
thev  request  to  be  discharged  from  the  consideration  of  the  subject  of 
Erecting  a  Market  House.  j,j^,,„   Bartlett. 

Ebex.   Moselev. 

Abm"   Willia.ms. 

Caleh  CusHiNf;. 

Tliis  report  was  accepted  and  the  recommendations 
adopted.  Several  months  later  the  subject  was  again  dis- 
cussed at  a  legal  meeting  of  the  citizen.s  of  Newburyport  ; 
and,  Aug.  5,  1822,  the  town  voted  "that  the  selectmen  be 
authorized  to  build  a  market  house  of  brick,  one  story  high, 
on  the  spot  where  the  shambles  lately  stood  "  ;  and  March  10, 
1823,  the  selectmen  were  authorized  "to  take  such  measures 
respecting  finishing  the  market  house  as  they  shall  judge 
most  for  the  interests  of  the  town  and  determine  what 
further  use  shall  be  made  of  the  same."  After  due  con- 
sideration the  selectmen  decided  to  add  another  story  to  the 
building,  provided  some  responsible  person  or  persons  would 
take  a  lease  of  the  same  on  fa\'orable  terms.  At  a  meeting 
of  the  legal  voters  of  the  tow^i  held  Jan.  17,  1825,  it  was 
"  voted  that  the  selectmen  be  authorized  to  finish  the  market 
house  at  an  expense  not  exceeding  one  thousand  dollars,  pro- 
vided St.  Mark's  Lodge  give  security  to  the  town  ior  the 
payment  of  the  sum  of  ten  per  centum  rent  per  annum  tor 
the  term  of  ten  years  and  enter  into  contract  that  the 
premises  shall  onh'  be  used  for   Masonic    piu'poses." 

In  compliance  with  this  vote  a  contract  was  j^repared  and 
signed  by  a  committee  appointed  on  the  ])art  of  St.  Mark's 
Lodge  of  Free  and  Accepted  Masons  ;  but,  in  the  meanwhile, 
other  plans  and  proi)ositions  were  submitted  to  the  selectmen 
for  the  right  to  complete  and  use  the  proposed  new  hall.  At 
a  meeting  of  the  legal  voters  of  the  town  held  Feb.  8,  1825, 
the  following  resoh'e  was  passed  :  — 

Whereas  the  committee  of  .St.  Mark's  Lodge  have  agreed  t(neiini|uisii 
any  claim  whicii  thev  mav  have,  bv  virtue  of  anv  votes  of  tliis  town  to 
the  use  of  the  hall  over  the  market,  provided  the  town  shall  make  them 
suitable  indemnitv  for  their  troul)le  and  expenses  not  exceeding  one 
hundred   dollars. 


MARKET    SQUARE  625 

/  (V(v/that  the  town  reconsider  the  vote  passed  the  17"'  day  of  Janu- 
arv  last  autliorizing  the  selectmen  to  finish  the  hall  over  the  market  for 
St.  Mark's  Lodge,  and  the  selectmen  be  authorized  to  make  reasonable 
indemnity,  to  said  St.  Mark's  Lodge,  not  exceeding  said  sum  of  one 
hundred  dollars.* 

In  1826,  the  long  and  troublesome  controversy  over  the 
title  to  land  under  and  adjoining  the  market-house  and  in 
the  vicinity  of  Frog  Pond  Vv^as  settled,  as  stated  in  the  sketch 
of  13artlet  Mall,  page  620,  by  the  payment  of  the  sum  of 
^1,200  by  the  town  of  Newburyport  to  the  proprietors  of 
common  and  undivided  land  in  Newbury.  Jan.  25,  1830, 
the  town  voted  to  finish  the  market-house  hall  and  lease 
the  same  to  the  Lyceum  Association  for  the  term  of  three 
years ;  but  this  vote  was  afterward  reconsidered.  Subse- 
quently other  proposals  were  made  for  the  improvement  and 
use  of  the  unfinished  hall  ;  but  no  definite  action  seems  to 
have  been  taken  until  April  8,  1834,  when  the  town  "voted 
to  finish  the  hall  of  the  Market  House,  provided  the  interest 
in  the  Court  House  shall  be  sold  to  the  satisfaction  of  the 
town,"  and  a  committee,  consisting  of  Amos  Noyes,  Richard 
Stone,  and  Henry  Frothingham,  was  chosen  to  attend  to  the 
repairs  and  improvements  in  case  the  court-house  property 
was  disposed  of.  One  of  the  articles  in  the  warrant,  dated 
May  4,  1835,  calling  upon  the  legal  voters  of  Newburyport 
to  assemble  at  the  town-house  for  the  transaction  of  public 
business,  reads  as  follows:  "To  see  if  they  (the  town)  will 
authorize  the  Selectmen  to  settle  with  the  Committee  who 
superintended  the  finishing  of  Market  Hall."  For  the  next 
fifteen  or  twenty  years  all  of  the  most  important  social  and 
political  gatherings  were  held  m  this  hall  ;  and,  during  the 
winter  season,  a  series  of  lectures  on  literary  and  scientific 
subjects  were  delivered  there  under  the  auspices  of  the 
Lyceum  Association. 

*  May  10,  1S25,  St.  Mark's  Lod^e  \oted  to  unite  with  St.  John's  Lodge  in  a  lease  of  Phenix 
Hall  for  Masonic  purposes.  October  25,  1S25,  .St.  Mark's  Lodge  \oted  to  raise  a  subscription  to 
pay  for  a  full-length  portrait  of  C  General  Washington,  painted  by  William  .Swain,  and  also 
appointed  a  committee  to  select  a  suitable  subject  for  a  companion  picture.  March  26,  1S26,  this 
committee  "voted  to  appropriate  the  sum  of  one  hundred  dollars,  received  from  the  town,  for  the 
purchase  of  a  painting  representing  (leneral  Joseph  Warren,  first  grand  master  of  Mass."  These 
portraits,  on  can\'as  measuring  twelve  feet  in  height,  and  six  feet  in  width,  are  in  the  lodge 
room  in  Essex  Hall  on  the  corner  of  State  and  Essex  streets,  Newburyport. 


/ 


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MARKET   SQUARE  627 

In  the  month  of  March,  1837,  the  town  of  Newburyport 
appointed  a  committee  to  consider  the  question  of  providing 
a  clock  to  be  located  in  Market  Square,  and  in  the  month  of 
April  following  accepted  the  report  of  this  committee.  The 
clock  was  placed  in  a  conspicuous  position  on  the  westerly 
side,  or  front,  ot  Market  Hall,  where  it  remained  until  Feb.  3, 
1896,  when  it  was  removed  and  replaced  by  a  new  one  of 
modern  construction,  with  an  illuminated  dial,  presented  to 
the  city  of  Newburyport  by  John  T.  Brown,  Esq. 

Previous  to  the  year  181 1,  Liberty  Street  did  not  extend 
from  Federal  Street  to  Market  Square  as  it  now  does,  but 
was  merely  a  narrow  way  connecting  with  Centre  Street. 
After  the  "  great  fire  "  it  was  widened  and  extended  through 
to  Market  Square. 

The  land  between  Elbow  lane  and  Middle  Street,  run- 
ning back  to  Fair  Street,  and  possibly  further,  was  originally 
granted  to  William  Morse,  and  his  residence  in  1679  was  on 
the  southerly  side  of  Greenleaf's  lane  (now  Market  Sc^uare) 
at  or  near  the  present  corner  of  Liberty  Street.  The  testi- 
mony of  friends  and  neighbors  relating  to  the  strange  and 
mysterious  sights  and  sounds  seen  and  heard  in  this  old 
house  more  than  two  centuries  ago  is  given  in  detail  on 
pages  123  to  134,  inclusive,  of  Coffin's  History  of  Newbury  ; 
but  the  statement  that  the  house  was  located  on  the  corner 
of  Ord way's  lane  and  the  country  road  (now  High  Street) 
is  erroneous,  as  will  appear  from  an  examination  of  the  fol- 
lowing abstract  of  title. 

\\\  the  proprietors'  records  for  the  year  1646  a  grant  of 
land  to  William  Morse  is  entered  as  follows  :  — 

In  consideration  of  William  Mors  his  resigning  up  into  the  Towns 
hands  his  house  lot  at  Old  town  which  he  doth  by  these  presents,  They 
granted  him  an  house  lot  of  four  acres  in  the  new  street  to  enjoy  to  him 
&  his  heirs  forever. 

On  another  page  this  record  is  repeated  in  words  to  the 
following  effect  :  — 

In  consideration  of  William  Mors  his  receiving  a  house  lot  at  new 
town  joyning  to  the  new  street  he  resigned  up  his  house  lot  at  the  Old 
town  for  the  use  of  the  Towne. 


628  OULD    XEWBUKY 

William  Morse  died  Now  29,  1683.  Ills  will,  ilalcd  Au^'.  .S, 
168^^,  and  ])i(>\cd  March  25,  1684,  gave  to  his  wife  I'^lizabeth, 
for  hei"  life,  aiul  then  to  his  daughter,  Abigail  Ilendricks, 
wife  of  John  Ilendricks,  and  her  children,  house,  barn, 
land,  etc.,  and  a])]M)inted  Captain  Daniel  Pearce,  Tristram 
Coffin,  and  Nathaniel  Clark  o\'erseers,  or  trustees,  to  dispose 
of  liis  meadows,  etc. 

June  19,  1696,  Moses  Pingr)'  and  wife  Abigail  (former!)- 
.Abigail  Hendricks)  con\'e}'ed  to  Daniel  Davison  liouse  and 
three  and  three-tiuarters  of  an  acre  of  land  (a  small  lot  had 
prexiously  been  sold),  which  land  and  house  were  formerly  in 
the  jDossession  of  the  said  William  Morse,  deceased,  and 
dex'ised  b\'  him  to  saiil  .Abigail  llendi'icks,  now  Al)igail 
IMngr)',  bounded  northerl}'  b\'  the  highway  and  land  of  the 
grantee  and  of  John  Tuckei',  on  the  west  In'  land  of  lulward 
Ordway,  easterl}-  b)'  land  of  John  Toocker,  land  of  the 
grantee,  and  land  of  Caleb  Mood}-,  and  southerl\-  b}'  the 
land  of  John  Hale,  Sr.  Mis.  Pingr)-,  acting  in  the  ca})acit\' 
of  executrix  of  the  will  of  William  Morse,  of  Newbur)-, 
deceased,  signed  this  conve}-ance  (ICssex  Deetls.  book  36, 
page  6i). 

Jul}'  6,  1696.  the  sanie  ]K'rsons  con\e\-ed  the  same  prop- 
erty, in  their  indi\idual  capacit}-,  to  Daniel  l)a\ison  (book  32, 
page  52). 

Aug.  26,  1699,  Major  Daniel  Davison  sold  to  Captain 
Peter  Coffin  four  acres  of  land  (having  ])urchased  the  small 
lot  pre\iousl}'  beloiiging  to  this  estate)  and  house,  bounded 
northerh'  b}'  land  of  I'homas  Mood}',  Captain  lulward  Sar- 
gent, and  William  Xo\'es,  easterb'  b\'  land  of  John  Hale, 
southei'h'  b\'  land  of  l-'awn  Clenients,  and  westerl\-  b\-  the 
highwa}-  (book   14.  page  301). 

.\o\'.  12,  1714,  Cajitain  Petei-  Coffin  con\-e}-ed  to  "  m}'  son 
in  law  Daniel  Da\'ist)n  and  m\  tlaughter  .\bigail  i  )a\  ison  his 
wife"  the  same  ])remises  described  abo\e  with  the  exception 
that  the  land  is  Ixiunded  on  the  east  b}'  Ilenr\'  Male,  insteatl 
of  John   Ilale  as  in  the  prexious  ileed   (bt)ok  35,  l)age  16). 

The  will  of  Majoi'  Haniel  l)a\ison.  dateil  Jan.  18,  1717-18, 
and    pi-o\ed    l-'eb.    11,1717    18,  ga\e   to   his  wife  .\bigail  and 


MARKET   SQUARE  629 

to  his  children,  ••  that  is  to  say  to  my  three  daughters  Sarah, 
Mar}'  and  Abigail  and  my  grandson  Daniel  Davison  an  equal 
share  of  my  homestead,  housing  and  land  that  was  formerly 
mortgaged  to  my  father  Peter  Coffin." 

March  30,  1723,  Abigail  Davison,  executrix  of  the  will  of 
Major  Daniel  Davison,  convejed  to  her  sons-in-law,  James 
Sheaf,  schoolmaster,  and  Zachariah  Fitch,  leather  dresser, 
both  of  Boston,  house  and  land  bounded  on  the  northwest  by 
the  highway  or  road,  on  the  southwest  by  land  of  Fawn 
Clements,  on  the  southeast  by  land  of  Cutting  Xoyes,  and 
on  the  northeast  by  land  of  Deacon  William  XoNes,  Captain 
Edward  Sargent,  Richard  Browne  and  Thomas  Mo<^»dv  /book 
41,  page  49). 

Juh'^T,  1724,  an  agreement  to  lay  out  a  lane  from  Fish 
Street  to  Chandler's  lane,  passing  through  land  of  Cutting 
XoNes,  Jacob  Sheaf,  Zachaiiah  Fitch,  and  Fawn  Clements, 
two  rods  wide  all  the  way,  is  recorded  in  the  Essex  registr)' 
of  deeds,  book  42,  page  247.  This  lane  is  now  known  as 
Middle  Street,  extending  from  the  foot  of  State  Street  to 
Federal  Street. 

James  .Sheaf  and  Zachariah  Pitch  sold  the  remainder  of 
the  William  Morse  estate  to  Tristram  Little  on  the  fifteenth 
day  of  April,  1730  (Essex  Deeds,  book  52,  page  22  >. 

Mr.  Little  owned  the  property  for  many  years.  His 
daughter,  Man,-  Little,  married  Michael  Dalton  Februar\    5. 

1733-4- 

The  half-tone  print  on  page  626  gives  the  northerij^  side  of 
the  Square,  with  the  town  pump  and  Market  Hall  as  the}- 
were  twenty  years  ago. 

On  page  630  is  a  view  of  the  southeasterly  side  of  Market 
Square  and  a  portion  of  Liberty  Street.  On  the  comer 
where  these  public  ways  meet,  not  far  from  the  brick  build- 
ing now  occupied  by  the  Ocean  National  Bank,  formerlv 
stood  the  house  of  William  Morse. 

For  many  years  before,  and  after,  the  removal  of  the  Third 
Parish  meeting-house  from  its  first  location  near  the  foot  of 
Greenleafs  lane   (now    State    Street)    the   open    space   and 


MARKET   SQUARE  631 

public  \va}'s  in  thit  neighborhood  were  the  scene  of  great 
activity  on  market  da3's.  Farmers  anxious  to  sell  hay,  grain, 
poultry,  butter,  cheese,  e^gs,  vegetables,  and  other  products 
of  the  dairy  and  the  farm,  came  from  distant  towns  and 
villages  seeking  purchasers,  and  returned  heavily  laden  with 
merchandise  and  household  su})plies  purchased  of  the  mer- 
chants and  traders  in  Newbury.  The  introduction  of  rail- 
roads, however,  has  turned  the  current  of  trade  in  other 
directions,  and  the  life  and  animation  of  the  old  market-place 
have  disappeared  forex'er. 


MOSES   BROWN. 


In  1635,  Thomas  Browne',  Richard  Browne,  George 
Browne,  and  James  Browne  came  from  Ij^swich  to  Newbury, 
with  Rev.  Thomas  Parker  and  others,  and  settled  on  the 
north  bank  of  the  river  Parker,  near  the  Lower  Green.  A 
plan,  giving  the  location  of  the  house-lots  assigned  to  each  of 
the  persons  above  named,  will  be  found  on  page  14  of  this 
book. 

Thomas  Browne'  was  born  near  Malford,  England,  in  1607, 
and  died  in  Newbury,  New  England,  Jan.  8,  1687.  His  son 
Francis-  married  Mary  Johnson  Nov.  21,  1653.  They  had 
several  children.  Their  oldest  son,  John'^  was  born  May  13, 
1665,  and  married  Ruth  Huse,  Aug.  27,  1683.  Joseph^  son 
of  John=^  and  Ruth  (Huse)  Browne,  was  born  Nov.  5,  1690, 
and  married  Abigail  Pearson  Nov.  11,  17 14.  They  had 
thirteen  children.  The  youngest,  Mose.s^'',  was  born  Oct.  2, 
1742. 

The  house  in  which  Joseph  Brown*  lived,  and  where  his 
children  were  born,  is  numbered  40  on  the  map  of  the  West 
Parish  drawn  by  John  Brown  in  1729  (see  page  392),  and 
was  standing  until  quite  recently  at  Brown  Springs,  so  called, 
on  the  Bradford  road. 

When  Moses  Brown''  was  cjuite  a  young  lad  he  was 
aj^prenticed  to  a  chaise-maker  on  Prospect  Street  in  Xew- 
bury])(jrt.  He  was  acti\e  and  industrious  and  soon  became  a 
skilful  workman.  In  1763,  he  commenced  business,  on  his 
own  account,  as  a  carriage  manufacturei-,  and  for  man\-  years 
devoted  his  time  and  attention  to  tlu-  dex'clopment  of  that 
industry. 

His  intention  of  marriage  to  Mar\-  Hall,  of  Newl)ur)porl, 
was  filed  with  the  town  clerk  Oct.  31,  1772  ;    but    the  recortls 


MOSES  BKOIVN  633 

do  not  show  when  or  where  the  marriage  ceremony  took 
place.  x\t  this  time,  the  commerce  of  Newburyport  was  in  a 
tiourisliing"  condition  :  and  Mr.  Brown  soon  became  interested 
in  the  shipment  of  merchandise  to  the  West  Indies,  receiving 
in  return  small  cargoes  of  sugar  and  molasses,  which  he  sold 
at  a  good  profit.  He  bought  a  dwelling-house,  with  twenty- 
five  or  thirty  rods  of  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same,  on 
Fish  Street,  now  State  Street,  which  he  owned  and  occupied 
for  many  years  (Essex  Deeds,  book  117,  page  247,  and  book 
138,  page  127).  When  the  Merchants'  Bank  building  was 
erected  this  house  was  removed  to  Olive  Street,  opposite 
Cono-ress  Street,  where  it  now  stands. 

Mrs.  Mary  (Hall)  Brown  died  June  28,  1778,  aged  ^-j  ;  and 
Moses  Brown  married,  Oct.  i,  1786,  for  his  second  wife,  Mary 
White,  of  Hax-erhill,  who  held  a  large  amount  of  property  in 
her  own  right. 

Sept.  10,  1 79 1,  he  bought  of  Tristram  Dalton,  for  ^1,400, 
about  one  and  one-half  acres  of  land  on  State  Street,  New- 
buryport, with  house,  barn,  and  other  buildings  thereon,  to 
which  he  removed  with  his  wife  and  only  daughter  (Essex 
Deeds,  book  154,  page  200). 

Feb.  23,  1792,  he  bought  of  Thomas  Woodbridge  Hooper 
land,  wharf,  and  fiats,  with  the  buildings  thereon,  bounded 
northwesterly  on  land  of  Stephen  Hooper,  extending  from 
Merrimack  Street  to  the  channel  of  Merrimack  River,  north- 
easterly on  said  channel,  southeasterly  on  Somersby's  landing, 
and  southwesterly  on  Merrimack  Street  (book  154,  page  200). 

On  this  wharf  property  Moses  Brown  erected  several  brick 
warehouses  for  the  storage  of  merchandise,  and  during  the 
next  twenty  years  developed  a  large  foreign  and  domestic 
trade  that  gave  to  that  locality  great  commercial  activity. 
Sept.  19,  1797,  he  bought  a  small  lot  of  land,  on  the  corner 
of  Titcomb  and  Merrimack  streets,  of  Nathaniel  Mulliken 
(Essex  Deeds,  book  163,  page  i^)  ;  and  in  1801  he  bought 
of  the  heirs  of  Enoch  Titcomb  land  between  Green  and  Tit- 
comb  streets,  extending  in  a  westerly  direction  from  Merri- 
mack Street  to  the  house  now  owned  and  occupied  by  Mrs. 
Samuel  J.  Spalding    (Essex   Deeds,  book  167,  pages  305  and 


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MOSES  BROWN  635 

306,  and  book  168,  page  207).  In  the  conveyances  of  this 
property  there  is  no  mention  of  buildings  except  a  mansion 
house  on  the  corner  of  Merrimack  and  Green  streets,  pur- 
chased of  Sarah  Titcomb  ;  and  with  that  exception  probably 
the  land  was  unoccupied. 

Green  Street  was  laid  out  in  17S2,  and  the  bounds  and 
limits  of  Pleasant  Street  from  State  to  Green  streets, 
"  through  land  of  Abel  Greenleaf,"  were  accepted  and 
approved  March  1 7,  1 796.  The  town  of  Newburyport 
voted,  April  2,  1798,  to  confirm  the  action  of  the  Select- 
men in  laying  out  a  public  way,  now  known  as  Titcomb 
Street,*  from  Union  (now  Washington)  to  Merrimack  Street  ; 
but  apparently  no  action  was  ever  taken  in  regard  to  Brown 
Square  and  the  continuation  of  Pleasant  Street. 

It  is  evident,  however,  from  the  terms  and  conditions  of  a 
deed,  dated  Nov.  13,  1802,  from  Moses  Brown  to  Joshua 
Titcomb,  that  the  highway  now  connecting  Green  Street  with 
Titcomb  Street  was  intended  to  form  a  part  of  the  public 
square.  The  land  conveyed  by  this  deed  was  on  the  north- 
easterly side  of  that  highway,  and  on  the  northwesterly  side 
of  the  present  city-hall.  The  description  reads  substantially 
as  follows  :  — 

Beginning  at  the  westerly  corner  of  said  lot  adjoining  a  square  which 
I  will  lay  down  eight  rods,  at  least,  in  width,  thence  partly  by  my 
own  land  and  partly  by  land  of  Ebenezer  Gunnison,  north  two  chains 
9I  links,  thence  by  said  Joshua  Titcomb's  land  south  69^  links,  thence 
by  my  own  land  southwesterly  two  chains,  and  thence  by  the  north- 
easterly side  of  said  square  73 1  links  ...  on  condition  that  only  a  brick 
building  shall  be  erected  on  the  southwesterly  end  (Essex  Deeds,  book 
171.  page  292). 

In  September  and  in  October,  1803,  two  small  lots  adjoin- 
ing the  above  land,  bounded  southwesterly  on  Brown   Square, 

♦Thirty  years  previous  to  the  laying  out  of  this  public  way,  Enoch  Titcomb,  distiller,  sold  to 
Abel  Merrill,  shipwright,  Edmund  Bartlet,  cordwainer,  Ichabod  Woodman,  retailer,  Obadiah 
Horton,  shipwright,  George  Burrough,  tanner,  all  of  Newburyport,  a  lot  of  land  to  erect  a  meet- 
ing-house upon:  and  by  another  deed,  dated  April  6,  176S,  Enoch  Titcomb  agreed  to  open  and 
keep  open  a  way  of  one  and  one-half  rods  wide  from  Merrimack  Street  up  to  said  lot  of  land  by 
his  son,  Joshua  Titcomb's,  fence,  for  said  committee  to  pass  and  repass  to  and  upon  said  lot  freely 
(Essex  Deeds,  book  130,  pages  262  and  263).  On  the  laud  purchased  of  Enoch  Titcomb,  a  meet- 
ing-house was  erected  by  the  Second  Congregational  Society  of  Newburyport.  The  building  now 
standing  there  is  the  third  house  of  public  worship  that  has  occupied  that  site. 


636  OULD    NEWBURY 

were  conveyed  by  Moses  Brown  to  Joshua  Titcoml)  on  the 
same  terms  and  conditions  (book  173,  page  5<S). 

The  erection  of  a  new  court-house  in  Newbur3'port  was,  at 
that  date,  under  consideration.  At  a  legal  meeting  of  the 
town  a  committee  was  appointed  to  select  a  suitable  building 
lot  ;  and  July  18,  1803,  they  voted  to  approve  the  action  of 
the  committee  in  selecting  a  lot  of  land  for  the  court-house 
"  by  Mr.  Moses  Brown's  Square  as  the  most  eligible  situation 
for  the  court  house"  and  requested  the  justices  of  the  court 
of  sessions  to  concur  with  them  in  this  action.  They  also 
voted  to  purchase  the  land  of  Moses  Brown  if  the  county 
would  relinquish  to  them  all  its  rights  and  interests  in  the 
old  court-house,  and  the  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same. 
The  following  year,  however,  the  town  voted  to  concur  with 
the  justices  of  the  court  of  sessions  in  the  selection  of  a  site 
for  the  court-house  on  the  mall  opposite  the  head  of  Green 
Street. 

A  few  years  later  Mr.  Brown  decided  to  erect  a  large  brick 
block  of  stores  and  dwelling-houses  on  the  westerly  side  of 
the  square,  extending  from  Titcomb  to  Green  streets.  The 
work  was  commenced  and  partially  completed.  But  the  con- 
tractor, on  account  of  ill  health,  was  obliged  to  relinquish  the 
job;  and,  soon  after,  the  great  fire  of  181 1  and  the  war  of 
18 1 2  produced  such  a  depression  in  the  business  affairs 
of  Newburyport  that  it  was  thought  advisable  to  leave  the 
building  as  it  now  stands.  It  was  occupied  for  many  years 
as  a  private  residence,  and  afterward  was  leased  for  a  board- 
ing-house. In  1885,  under  new  management,  it  was  opened 
to  the  travelling  public  as  a  hotel  and  has  since  been  known 
as  the  Brown  Square  House.  The  bronze  statue  of  William 
Lloyd  Garrison,  standing  on  a  granite  pedestal  in  the  centre 
of  the  square,  was  presented  to  the  city  of  Xewburxport 
July  4,  1893,  by  William  H.  Swasey,  Ksc|. 

In  addition  to  the  estates  already  mentioned  Moses  Brown 
owned  large  and  \'aluable  lots  of  land  in  the  \icinit)'  of  High 
Street,  Pond  Street,  and  the  old  turnpike.  He  increased 
his  investments  from  )-ear  to  }ear  and  rapidly  accumulated 
wealth.       When   the   buildini;  and   founding"  of  a  theological 


MOSES   BROWN  637 

seminary  at  Andover,  Mass.,  was  proposed,  he  gave  to  that 
institution  the  sum  of  Si 0.000,  and  when  the  work  was  com- 
pleted he  added  S2 5,000  to  his  previous  gift. 

In  personal  appearance  Moses  Brown  was  of  medium 
height,  with  a  thin,  spare  iigure  and  a  strong  and  vigorous 
constitution.  He  was  modest  and  unassuming  in  manner, 
seeking  neither  public  applause  nor  official  honors.  "He 
pursued  business  as  though  the  gains  therefrom  were  not  for 
his  use  alone,  and  he  distributed  them  as  a  trust  for  the  good 
of  others.  The  law  of  rectitude  was  in  his  heart,  and  the 
balances  of  equity  in  his  hand."  In  his  family  and  personal 
relations  he  was  kind  and  affectionate,  and  his  purity  of  life 
and  character  secured  for  him  the  honor  and  respect  of  his 
fellow  townsmen.  His  second  wife,  Mary  (White)  Brown, 
died  Aug.  11,  1821,  leaving  one  daughter,  who  married  Hon. 
William  B.  Bannister. 

Moses  Brown  died  Feb.  9,  1827,  aged  84.  In  his  will, 
dated  Oct.  22,  1824,  and  proved  the  first  Tuesday  in  March, 
1827,  he  gave  the  Dalton  house  on  State  Street,  "where  I 
now  dwell,  with  the  land  under  the  same  and  adjoining,  and 
the  yard  and  garden  and  field  lying  west  of  the  same  to 
William  B.  Bannister,  my  son-in-law,  during  his  life,  and 
then  to  the  wife  and  children  of  the  said  Bannister."  He 
also  gave  to  the  inhabitants  of  Xewburyport  "  the  sum  of  six 
thousand  dollars  as  a  fund  for  the  use  and  support  of  a  gram- 
mar school  in  said  town  forever "  ;  and  by  a  codicil,  dated 
April  25,  1826,  he  provided  that  this  fund  should  accumulate 
until  the  principal  and  interest  should  amount  to  the  sum  of 
fifteen  thousand  dollars.  The  rest  and  residue  of  his  estate, 
after  the  payment  of  this  and  other  legacies,  he  gave  to  his 
grand-daughter,  Sarah  White  Bannister. 

Mrs.  Mary  (Brown)  Bannister  died  Sept.  19,  1824.  Her 
daughter,  Sarah  White  Bannister,  married  Dr.  Ebenezer  Hale 
June  13,  1844.  Mrs.  Hale  died  Feb.  29,  1880,  leaving  no 
surviving  children.  In  1882,  all  the  property  not  previously 
disposed  of,  belonging  to  the  estate  of  Moses  Brown,  was 
sold  and  the  proceeds  divided  among  his  legal  heirs. 


ABRAHAM   WHEELWRIGHT. 


Soon  after  the  settlement  of  Newbury,  in  1635,  the  peace 
and  quiet  of  the  colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay  was  disturbed 
by  a  religious  controversy  in  which  ]\Irs.  Anne  (Marbury) 
Hutchinson,  wife  of  William  Hutchinson,  took  an  active 
part.  Her  brother-in-law,  Rev.  John  Wheel wright\  arrived 
in  New  England  May  26,  1636,  and  was  admitted  to  mem- 
bership in  the  church  at  Boston  June  12,  1636.  He  was 
the  son  of  Robert  and  Katherine  Wheelwright,  of  Saleby, 
Lincolnshire,  England,  and  was  graduated  from  Sidney- 
Sussex  College,  Cambridge,  in  16 14.  He  married  for  his 
first  wife  Marie,  daughter  of  Rev.  Thomas  Storre,  vicar  of 
Bilsby,  Lincolnshire.  After  the  death  of  his  father-in-law, 
Rev.  John  Wheelwright  was  placed  in  charge  of  the  vacant 
parish.  His  wife  died  in  1630.  In  1631,  he  married,  for 
his  second  wife,  Marie,  daughter  of  Edward  Hutchinson,  of 
Alford,  Lincolnshire.  A  few  years  later  he  consented  to 
resign  his  living  for  a  sum  of  money  ;  but  the  transaction 
coming  to  the  knowledge  of  his  bishop,  the  living  was 
declared  forfeited.  His  offence  was  not  unusual  or  uncom- 
mon in  the  army  and  nav)'  as  well  as  in  the  Church,  early 
in  the  seventeenth  centur)',  and  apparently  it  did  not  injure 
his  personal  reputation.  Cotton  Mather,  in  a  letter  to 
George  X^aughan,  saNs  :  "  His  worst  enemies  never  looked 
on  him  as  chargeable  with  the  least  ill  j^ractices.  He  was 
a  gentleman  of  the  most  unspotted  morals  imaginable,  a 
man  of  most   unblemished  reputation."' 

He  came  to  New  England  with  his  wife  and  famil_\-  in 
1636,  and  was  for  a  few  months  ]Kistor  of  the  "Chapel  of 
Ease"  at  Mount  Wollaston.  In  a  sermon  delivered  in 
Boston   on    the    nineteenth    da)-   of    Januar\',    1637,   he    gave 


ABRAHAM    WIIEELU'KJGHT  639 

expression  to  some  vigorous  thoughts  that  aroused  a  storm 
of  criticism  and  censure.  In  the  month  of  March  following, 
he  was  accused  of  contempt  and  sedition,  and  in  November 
he  was  disfranchised  by  the  General  Court  and  ordered  to 
depart  from  the  colony  within  fourteen  days. 

He  left  Boston  and  made  his  way  along  the  sea  coast 
through  Salem,  Ipswich,  and  Newbury  to  his  first  stopping- 
place,  just  beyond  the  "bound  house"  near  Hampton,  N.  H., 
where  he  remained  for  a  few  weeks,  and  then  pushed  on 
through  the  heavy  snow  of  that  bitter  winter  to  Squamscott 
Falls  on  the  Piscataqua  River,  where  he  bought  of  the 
Indians  a  large  tract  of  land  and  founded  the  town  of 
Exeter. 

In  1643,  the  jurisdiction  of  the  colony  of  Massachusetts 
Bay  was  extended  over  and  beyond  the  limits  of  this  new 
settlement,  and  Rev.  Mr.  Wheelwright,  with  six  or  eight  of 
his  proscribed  friends,  removed  to  Wells,  Me.,  where,  by  an 
agreement  with  the  agent  of  Sir  Ferdinando  Gorges,  he  was 
allowed  to  take  up  land  and  organize  a  church. 

In  May,  1644,  the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts  de- 
clared "  his  banishmt  taken  offe,"  and  in  1647  he  accepted 
a  call  to  the  church  at  Hampton,  N.  H.,  as  an  assistant  to 
the  Rev.  Timothy  Dalton.  In  1656,  he  made  a  voyage  to 
England,  where  he  remained  nearly  six  years.  After  his 
return  to  New  England  he  was  settled  Dec.  9,  1662,  as 
pastor  of  the  church  in  Salisbury,  Mass.,  and  died  there  very 
suddenly,  of  apoplexy,  Nov.  15,  1679,  in  the  eight3'-seventh 
year  of  his  age.  He  was  buried  in  the  old  graveyard  near 
the  corner  where  the  road  from  Ring's  Island  meets  the  I'oad 
to  Salisbury  Beach,  but  there  is  no  stone  or  monumental 
tablet  to  mark  his  last   resting-place. 

His  oldest  son,  Colonel  Samuel  Wheelwright^,  was  born  in 
England  in  1635.  He  married  Esther,  daughter  of  Jeremy 
Houchin,  of  Dorchester,  Mass.  He  received,  when  about 
twenty-one  years  of  age,  a  deed  of  two  hundred  acres  of  land 
at  Wells,  Me.,  from  his  father  and  removed  there.  He  was 
afterward  prominent  in  political  affairs,  and  took  an  active 
part  in  the  defence  of  that  town  during  King  Phili[)'s  W'ar. 
He  died  at  Wells  May  15,  1700. 


640  OL'LD    XEW'BCRY 

Colonel  John  Wheelwright'^  the  oldest  son  of  Colonel 
Samuel  and  P^sther  (Houchin)  Wheelwright,  was  born  at 
Wells  in  1664.  He  married,  Jan.  28,  1689,  Mary,  daughter 
of  Captain  George  Snell,  mariner,  of  l^ortsmouth,  N.  H.  He 
was  judge  of  the  probate  court  and  of  the  court  of  common 
pleas  in  York  County,  Me.,  and  was  in  active  military  service 
during  the  Indian  wars.  His  daughter  l^Lsther,  when  only 
seven  years  of  age,  was  captured  by  the  Indians  and  taken  to 
Canada.  He  made  every  effort  to  effect  her  exchange,  but 
without  avail.  Some  years  later  she  was  baptized  into  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church,  and  was  afterward  Sister  Superior 
of  the  Ursuline  Convent  at  Ouebec.  Colonel  John  Wheel- 
wright-^ died  at  Wells  May  13,  1745. 

Jeremiah^,  third  son  of  Colonel  John  and  Mary  (Snell) 
Wlieelwright,  was  born  in  Wells,  Me.,  March  5,  1697-98. 
He  married  Mary,  daughter  of  Bellamy  and  Mary  Rosworth, 
of  l^ristol,  Mass.  (now  R.  I.).  He  was  a  lieutenant  in  the 
expedition  sent  from  New  England  in  1745  for  the  capture 
of  Louisburg,  and  is  said  to  have  served  under  General  Wolfe 
in  Canada.      He  died  in  Portsmouth,  X.  H.,  in  1768. 

Jeremiah  Wheelwright'"^,  only  son  of  Jeremiah^  and  Mary 
(Bosworth)  Wheelwright,  was  born  at  Portsmouth  June  13, 
1732.  He  was  for  a  short  time  schoolmaster  at  Ipswich, 
Mass.  He  married  Mary,  daughter  of  Abraham  Davis,  of 
Gloucester.  His  intention  of  marriage  was  filed  with  the 
town  clerk  Aug.  3,  1754.  He  was  commissar}-  in  the  expe- 
dition to  Canada  under  the  command  of  Colonel  Benedict 
Arnold,  and  died  Jan.  28,  1778,  from  the  effects  of  exposure 
in  that  campaign. 

Abraham",  son  of  Jeremialv''  and  Mary  (Davis)  Wheel- 
wright, was  born  in  Gloucester  Jul}-  26,  1757.  In  July. 
1775,  "^^  sailed  on  board  the  brig  "  Dolphin,"  Anthony  Knapp 
master,  from  Newburyport  to  Barbadoes  and  thence  by  the 
way  of  Newfoundland  to  the  port  first  named.  In  December, 
1775,  he  enlisted  for  twehe  months'  ser\-ice  in  the  Conti- 
nental Army,  under  Captain  r'.noch  Putnam,  in  a  reginient 
commanded  by  Colonel  Israel  I  lutchinsoii,  of  Danxers.  He 
was   stationed    at    Winter    Ilill,   and,  after   the   evacuation   of 


ABRAHAM    IVIIEEL]VR IGHT  641 

Boston  by  the  British  troops,  his  regiment  was  quartered  in 
the  college  buildings  at  Cambridge.  He  assisted  in  the  forti- 
fication of  Dorchester  Heights,  and  in  May,  1776,  went  with 
his  regiment  to  New  York,  where  he  remained  several  weeks 
occupied  in  the  work  of  building  Fort  Washington. 

He  volunteered  as  an  artillery  man  in  the  expedition 
against  the  British  on  Long  Island,  and  served  in  Captain 
Foster's  company  under  command  of  Colonel  Henry  Knox. 
Two  months  later,  he  rejoined  his  regiment  at  Fort  Washing- 
ton, and  was  in  the  battles  of  Harlem  Heights  and  White 
Plains.  In  December,  he  crossed  the  Delaware  with  the 
Northern  army  under  the  command  of  General  Washington, 
and  assisted  in  the  capture  of  the  Hessians  at  Trenton. 

His  term  of  enlistment  having  expired,  he  consented  to 
remain  with  his  regiment  until  new  recruits  could  be  secured. 
In  January,  1777,  he  took  part  in  the  battle  of  Princeton  and 
P^eb.  15,  1777,  he  was  discharged  from  the  service.  He 
returned  to  Massachusetts  with  Captain  Brown,  of  Cam- 
bridge, and  Captain  Winthrop   Sargent,  of  Gloucester. 

An  interesting  account  of  the  services  and  adventures  of 
Abraham  Wheelwright  as  a  soldier  and  sailor,  written  by 
himself  when  eighty  years  of  age,  will  be  found  in  the 
genealogy  of  the  Wheelwright  family,  now  in  preparation, 
and  soon  to  be  published,  by  lidmund  M.  Wheelwright,  Esq., 
of  Boston.  The  names  of  the  vessels  in  which  the  young 
privateersman  sailed,  the  details  of  his  capture  and  escape 
from  imprisonment,  with  other  facts  and  incidents  connected 
with  his  early  life,  are  given  in  this  concise  and  modest 
narrative. 

He  evidently  had  a  fondness  for  the  sea  ;  and,  soon  after 
his  release  from  military  duty,  in  1777,  he  shipped  on  board 
a  sloop,  Isaac  P^lwell,  master,  bound  for  Demerara,  and  the 
next  year  made  a  voyage  to  Martinique  with  Captain  Moses 
Hale.  In  1779,  he  was  mate  of  an  armed  schooner,  carrying 
six  guns,  commanded  by  John  Holmes  of  Ipswich,  and  sailed 
for  Guadeloupe.  On  the  return  voyage  the  vessel  w^as  sur- 
prised and  captured  by  a  Liverpool  Letter  of  Marque.  He 
was  taken  prisoner  to  Cork   Haven,  Ireland,  but  succeeded  in 


ABRAHAM    WHEELWKIGHT  643 

making  his  escape,  and  reached  home  by  the  way  of  Rarba- 
does  and  St.  Eustatius  after  an  absence  of  eleven  months. 

His  father  having  died  in  1778,  his  mother  removed,  with 
her  family,  from  Gloucester  and  was  living  in  Newburyport 
previous  to  Jan.  i,  1780.  Abraham  Wheelwright,  after  a 
few  weeks  of  rest  and  relaxation,  sailed  in  the  prize  ship 
"  Uriah,"  Isaac  G.  Pearson,  master,  and  was  captured  by  two 
Liverpool  Letters  of  Marque  and  taken  to  Antigua.  He 
came  home  in  the  brig  "  Ruby,"  John  Kabson,  master  ;  and, 
Sept.  15,  1780,  he  married  Rebecca,  daughter  of  Joseph 
Knight,  of  Newbury.  After  his  marriage,  he  shipped  on 
board  the  brig  "  Marquis  De  La  Fayette,"  carrying  six  guns, 
Seth  Thomas,  master,  and  made  a  voyage  to  Guadeloupe  and 
back.  He  subsequently  sailed  as  mate  of  the  brig  "Cor- 
morant," John  Perkins,  master,  and  was  captured  on  the 
homeward  passage  and  taken  to  Bermuda.  The  records  of 
the  Pension  Bureau  at  Washington,  D.  C.,  state  that  "Abra- 
ham W^heelwright  served  about  three  years  in  all  on  board 
the  Brig  '  Spy,'  six  guns,  Capt.  Lane." 

After  the  close  of  the  war  he  sailed  as  master  and  part 
owner  of  the  brig  "  Active  "  for  Joseph  Marquand  ;  and  at  a 
later  date,  in  partnership  with  his  brother  Ebenezer,  he  estab- 
lished a  large  and  profitable  business  with  the  West  Indies. 
Sept.  30,  1789,  he  bought  of  Samuel  Noyes,  and  wife 
Abigail,  of  Campton,  N.  H.,  land  and  buildings  on  a  way  two 
rods  wide,  now  known  as  Spring  Street,  which  he  owned  and 
occupied  at  the  time  of  his  death  (Essex  Deeds,  book  151, 
page  96). 

June  4,  1 79 1,  Mary  Wheelwright,  of  Newburyport,  widow 
of  Jeremiah  W^heelwright,  sold  to  Abraham  and  Ebenezer 
Wheelwright  all  the  real  estate  in  Gloucester  devised  to  her 
by  her  father,  Abraham  Uavis,  late  of  Gloucester  (P^ssex 
Deeds,  book  153,  page  94). 

Jan.  3,  1806,  John  Greenleaf  sold  to  Abraham  Wheel- 
wright, merchant,  for  $3,000,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
rods  of  land,  bounded  on  the  northeast  by  High  Street,  on 
the  northwest  by  a  new  street  called  Brown  Street,  on  the 
southeast  by  land  of  l^benezer  Stocker,  and  on  the  southwest 


644 


OULD    XEWBURY 


by  land  of  the  ^-rantor  (Kssex  Deeds,  book  i8o,  page  7). 
On  this  lot  of  land  Abraham  Wheelwright  built  the  three- 
story  brick-house  now  owned  and  occupied  by  Hon.  Albert  C. 
Titconib.  The  half-tone  print  on  page  642  gives  a  view  of 
the  house  as  it  was  before  any  alterations  had  been  made  in 
its  exterior. 

The  commercial  prosperity  of  Newburyport  was  seriously 
threatened  by  the  great  fire  and  the  War  of  181 2.  Mr. 
Wheelwright   lost  a  large  portion  of  his  property  ;  and  Dec. 


ABRAHAM    WHEELWRIGHT. 


30,  1 81  3,  he  sold  his  house  and  land  on  High  Street  to  Peter 
Le  Breton  (Essex  Deeds,  book  204,  page  119),  and  removed 
with  his  family  to  the  house  on  Spring  Street  that  he  had 
prexiousl)'  occupied. 

He  was  e.\tremel\'  conservative  in  his  \-iews  and  opinions, 
and  a  devout  member  of  the  Presb\tcrian  Church.  He 
dressed  throughout  his  life  in  the  fashion  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  and  was  one  of  the  last  jiersons  who  wore  knee 
breeches   and   long  stockings   in    Xewburxport. 


ABRAHAM    WHEELWRIGHT  645 

He  died  Apt41-f9,  1852:-     His  children  were  as  tollows  :  — 

Jeremiah,  born  in  Newburyport  Sept.  15,  17S1  ;  married,  Jan.  27,  1805, 
Mary  Blunt  of  Portsmouth,  N.  H. ;  and  was  lost  at  sea  in  October, 
1S30. 

Rebecca,  born  Dec.  30,  i  783  '•   tlied  in  infancy. 

Rebecca,  born  Dec.  30,  1784:  married  Thomas  March  Clark  of  New- 
buryport May  29,  181 1. 

Abraham,  born  Dec.  10.  1785:    died  Dec.  15,  17S5. 

Abraham,  born  Dec.  4,  1786:  fell  from  masthead  of  ship  ••  \'enus "' 
and  drowned  May  21,  1802. 

John,  born  Feb.  14,  1790;  married,  first.  Caroline  E.  Payson  Oct.  24, 
181 5  ;  married,  second,  Mrs.  Ann  (Wheelright)  Adams,  daughter  of 
Ebenezer  and  Anna  (Coombs)  Wheelright,  Dec.  2,  1826;  died 
Aug.   24,   1842. 

Joseph,  born  Dec.  29,  1791  ;  married  Levissa  Dodge  at  Winchester, 
Ky.,  Nov.  23,  181 5;    died  Aug.  24,  1853. 

Elizabeth  Cogswell,  born  Aug.  28,  1 793  :  married  George  Greenleaf 
of  Newburvport  Oct.  19,  1813  ;   died  in  NPay,-i894. /'v'av  '',  ■i'-"-' . 

Ebenezer,  born  May  17.  1796;    died  at  sea  .Sept.  4,  1825. 

Mary  Ann,  born  June   26,    1798;    married   Benjamin   Harrod   of   New- 
buryport July  25,  1825  ;    and  died  Dec.  13,  T831. 
Sarah   Plummer,   born  Aug.   27,    1800;     married   William    B.    Titcomb 
May  ID.  1827;  died  April  26,  1884. 


THE  GREAT   FIRE. 


May  31,  181 1,  a  disastrous  fire  devastated  the  most  thickly 
settled  portion  of  Newburyport.  From  a  pamphlet  published 
by  W.  and  J.  Oilman  June  5,  181 1,  the  following  account  is 
taken  :  — 

The  fire  commenced  in  an  unimproved  stalale  in  Mechanic  row. 
owned  by  David  Lawrence,  which,  at  the  moment  when  the  fire  was 
di.scovered,  was  found  to  be  completely  enveloped  in  flames.  It  soon 
extended  to  the  market  and  to  State  Street,  and  spread  in  such  various 
directions  as  to  baftie  all  exertions  to  subdue  it.  In  a  few  hours  it  pros- 
trated every  building  on  the  north  side  of  Cornhill,  and  both  sides  of 
State  Street  from  Cornhill  to  the  market ;  it  then  proceeded  into  Essex 
Street,  on  the  north  east  side,  to  the  house  of  Captain  James  Kettle, 
where  it  was  checked,  into  Middle  Street  as  far  as  Fair  Street  on  the 
north-east  side  and  within  a  few  rods  thereof  on  the  south-west  side  — 
into  Liberty  Street  within  one  house  of  Independent  Street,  and  down 
Water  Street  as  far  as  Hudson's  wharf,  sweeping  off  every  building 
within  that  circle.  The  whole  of  Centre  Street  was  laid  in  ashes,  and 
the  whole  range  of  buildings  in  Merchant's  row  on  the  Ferry  wharf, 
also  all  the  stores  on  the  several  wharves  between  the  market  and 
Marquand's  wharf,  including  the  latter  :  thus  clearing  a  large  tract  of 
land  of  sixteen  and  a  half  acres  in  a  part  of  the  town  the  most  compact, 
and  containing  a  much  larger  proportion  of  the  wealth  of  the  town  than 
any  other  part. 

It  is  estimated  that  nearlv  two  hundred  and  fifty  buildings  were 
burnt,  most  of  which  were  stores  and  dwelling  houses ;  in  which  number 
nearly  all  the  dry  goods  stores  in  town  are  included,  four  printing  offices, 
being  the  whole  number  in  town :  and  including  the  Xt-7i.'di/r\'porf 
//tvv//r/ office ;  the  custom  house:  the  surveyor's  office:  the  post  office: 
two  insurance  offices  (the  Llnion  and  the  I'henix).  the  Baptist  meeting- 
house; four  attorney's  offices;  four  book  stores,  the  loss  in  one  of 
which  is  thirty  thousand  dollars,  and  also  the  town  library. 

iilunt's  building  and  the  I'henix  building,  two  large  four  story  brick 
buildings,  seemed  to  jiresent  a  liarrier  to  the  destructive  element,  and 
great    hopes    were    entertained   for  a  time   that    they   would   etiectually 


THE    GREAT  EIRE  647 

restrain  its  rage:  but  bv  a  sudden  cliange  of  the  wind  the  Hames  were 
carried  directly  upon  these  immense  piles,  which  they  soon  overtopped, 
and  involved  in  the  calamity,  which  threatened  to  become  general. 

State  Street  at  this  time  presented  a  spectacle  most  terribly  sublime  ! 
The  wind  soon  after  its  change  blew  strong :  these  buildings  which  were 
much  the  highest  in  the  street  threw  the  fire  in  awful  columns  many 
yards  into  the  air.  and  the  Hames  extended  in  one  continued  sheet  of 
fire  across  the  spacious  area  I 

The  large  brick  Baptist  meeting-house  in  Liberty  Street,  in  which 
many  had  deposited  their  goods,  furniture,  &c.,  as  (from  its  distance  and 
construction)  a  place  of  undoubted  safety,  with  its  contents  shared  and 
increased  the  awful  calamity. 

At  two  o'clock  in  the  morning  the  lire  seemed  to  rage  in  every  direc- 
tion with  irresistible  fury,  and  the  inhabitants  saw  very  little  prospect  of 
preserving  any  portion  of  the  town.  Everything  was  accomplished 
which  intelligent  and  ardent  exertion  could  effect :  but  they  were  dis- 
heartened by  perceiving  those  efforts  apparently  without  success.  About 
four  the  danger  diminished,  and  at  six  the  fire  had  in  a  great  degree 
spent  its  fury. 

The  scene,  says  a  gentleman,  who  was  present  during  the  night,  was 
the  most  trulv  terrible  I  have  ever  witnessed.  At  the  commencement 
of  the  tire,  it  was  a  bright  moonlight  night,  and  the  evening  was  cool 
and  pleasajit.  But  the  moon  gradually  became  obscured,  and  at  length 
disappeared  in  the  thick  cloud  of  smoke  which  shrouded  the  atmos- 
phere. The  glare  of  light  throughout  the  town  was  intense,  and  the 
heat  that  of  a  sultry  summer  noon.  The  streets  were  thronged  with 
those  whose  dwellings  were  consumed,  conveying  the  remains  of  their 
property  to  places  of  safety.  The  incessant  crash  of  falling  buildings, 
the  roaring  of  chimneys  like  distant  thunder,  the  flames  ascending  in 
curling  volumes  from  a  vast  extent  of  ruins,  the  air  filled  with  a  shower 
of  fire,  and  the  feathered  throng  fluttering  over  their  wonted  retreats, 
and  dropping  into  the  flames ;  the  lowing  of  the  cows,  and  the  confused 
noise  of  exertion  and  distress,  united  to  impress  the  mind  with  the  most 
awful  sensations. 

The  map  on  the  following"  page,  showing  the  bounds  and 
limits  of  the  burnt  district,  is  taken  from  a  drawing  made  by 
Andrew  Frothingham  in  181 1.  The  locations  of  a  few  promi- 
nent buildings  are  marked  thereon. 

Mechanics'  Row,  where  the  fire  started,  was  a  narrow 
street,  extending  from  Market  Square  to  Threadneedle  alley. 
It  has  since  been  extended  through  to  Pleasant  Street  and  is 
now  called   Inn    Street.      Cornhill   was   the  westerly   side  of 


THE    GREAT  EIRE  649 

State  Street  between  Threadneedle  alley  and  Pleasant 
Street.  Liberty  Street  extended  from  Federal  Street  to 
Centre  Street,  but  apparently  did  not  continue  tlirough 
to  Market  Square.  After  the  fire,  it  was  laid  out  as  it 
now  is.  An  effort  was  made  to  widen  it  throughout  its 
entire  length  to  h'cderal  Street,  but  was  abandoned  on 
account  of  the  cost. 

Rev.  Daniel  Dana's  meeting-house  on  Federal  .Street  is 
now  known  as  the  j^^irst  Presbyterian  meeting-house.  Rev. 
Horace  C.  Hovey,  pastor.  The  jail  on  King  (now  P'ederal) 
Street  was  built  on  land  purchased  of  Anthony  Somerby, 
P'eb.  4,  1743-4,  by  the  town  of  Newbury  (P2sse.\  Deeds, 
book  '$,'i,  page  2).  This  property  was  conveyed  to  the  county 
of  Essex  July  21,  1758,  and  remained  in  the  possession  of 
the  county  until  the  new  stone  jail,  on  the  westerly  side  of 
P'rog  Pond,  was  completed   in  the  year   1825. 

The  two-story  brick  building  on  High  Street,  at  the  head 
of  P'ruit  Street,  was  occupied  by  a  private  school  for  boys  and 
girls,  under  the  control  of  the  Newburyport  Academy  Asso- 
ciation, incorporated  in  1807.  Mr.  Alfred  \V.  Pike  had 
charge  of  the  male  department  of  the  school  for  several 
years.  Mr.  Isaac  W.  Wheelwright,  Mr.  Roger  S.  Howard, 
and  Mrs.  PTances  (Mills)  Lord  (afterward  wife  of  Dr. 
Richard  S.  Spofford)  were  also  teachers  in  the  institution 
some  years  later. 

During  the  winter  months  a  commodious  hall  in  the  second 
story  of  the  Academy  building  was  used  for  lectures  and 
debates  by  the  Newburyport  Lyceum,  David  Perkins  Page 
being  manager  and  corresponding  secretary.  In  1842,  the 
school  was  discontinued  and  the  building  sold  to  Messrs. 
John  Osgood  and  Charles  J.  Brockway  and  by  them  trans- 
formed into  a  dwelling-house  for  two  families. 

The  Second  Presb}'terian  meeting-house,  where  John  Giles 
officiated,  now  stands  with  its  front  or  main  entrance  on 
Harris  Street,  having  been  moved  to  its  present  position 
about  forty  years  ago.  It  formerly  stood  on  a  line  parallel 
with,  but  ten  or  fifteen  rods  back  from,  Harris  Street,  with 
the    steeple    on    the  northerl}-    end,    and    an    entrance    there 


650  OULD    NEUliUKY 

from  the  street,  and  also  one  at  the  southerly  end  from  a 
private  court,  afterward  laid  out  by  the  cit}'  of  Newburyport 
and  now  knt)wn  as  Park  Street. 

The  dwelling-house  on  State  Street  built  in  1772  by 
Patrick  Tracy,  for  his  son  Nathaniel  Tracy,  appears  on  the 
map  drawn  by  Mr.  P'rothingham.  This  house  is  now  owned 
and  occupied  as  a  library  and  reading-room  by  the  city  of 
Newburyport. 

The  meeting-house  of  the  P'irst  Religious  Society  (Rev. 
John  Andrews,  pastor),  erected  in  the  year  1800,  escaped 
destruction,  though  located  only  a  few  rods  distant  from  the 
place  where  the  fire  began. 


WILLIAM   WHEELWRIGHT. 


The  biographical  sketch  of  Abraham  Wheelwright  on 
page  638  gives  the  names  of  his  ]3aternal  ancestors  from 
Rev.  John  Wheelwright  to  Jeremiah  Wheelwright,  of  the 
fifth  generation,  who  married  Mary  Davis  of  Gloucester 
in    1754. 

Ebenezer,  brother  of  Abraham  Wheelwright,  and  son  of 
Jeremiah  and  Mary  (Davis)  Wheelwright,  was  born  in 
Gloucester  June  16,  1764.  After  the  death  of  his  father 
in  1778,  he  came  to  Xewburyport  with  his  mother,  brother, 
and  sisters.  He  married  May  10,  1790,  Anna,  daughter  of 
William  Coombs,  of  Xewburyport. 

William  Wheelwright,  son  of  Ebenezer  and  Anna  (Coombs) 
Wheelwright,  was  born  in  Xewburyport  March  16,  1798.  In 
the  year  1800,  Ebenezer  Wheelwright  built  the  house  on 
High  Street,  now  owned  and  occupied  by  the  writer  of  this 
sketch,  as  stated  on  page  1 34  of  this  volume,  and  there 
William  Wheelwright  lived  during  his  boyhood.  He  at- 
tended the  public  schools  of  the  town  until  he  was  about 
twelve  years  of  age,  when  he  was  sent  to  Andover  Academy, 
where  he  completed  his  education. 

Ebenezer  Wheelwright  was  a  shipmaster  in  early  life,  and 
his  son  W^illiam  soon  manifested  a  desire  to  pursue  the  same 
vocation.  With  the  consent  of  his  jjarents,  he  shipped  as 
cabin  boy  on  board  a  vessel  bound  to  the  West  Indies  ;  and, 
during  the  ne.xt  two  or  three  years,  rose  rapidly  through  all 
the  grades  of  seamanship  to  that  of  captain,  in  181 7,  when 
he  was  only  nineteen  )'ears  of  age. 

In  1823,  he  was  in  command  of  the  ship  "  Rising  Empire," 
owned  by  William  Bartlet,  Esq.,  of  Xewburyport,  when  the 
vessel  was  wrecked  off  the  coast  of  South   America,  near  the 


652  Oi'LD    XEU'BURY 

mouth  of  the  river  La  Plata.  The  captain  and  crew,  with 
the  exception  of  one  man,  after  twenty-four  hours'  exposure 
in  an  oi)en  boat,  reached  the  shore  in  safet)'. 

Captain  Wheelwright,  on  his  arrival  at  Huenos  Ayres,  made 
known  his  destitute  condition  to  a  gentleman  of  that  cit)', 
and  was  soon  after  offered  a  situation  as  supercargo  of  a 
vessel  about  to  sail  for  X'alparaiso.  He  accepted  the  posi- 
tion ;  and  after  a  long  and  tedious  \-oyage  of  four  or  five 
months  around  Cape  Horn  he  arrived  at  the  port  designated. 
Having  a  desire  to  inform  himself  in  regard  to  the  business 
facilities  and  commercial  advantages  of  the  west  coast  of 
South  America,  he  extended  his  travels  to  (Guayaquil,  the  sea- 
port of  Colombia,  where  he  decided  to  remain  and  gixe  his 
time  and  attention  to  the  dex'clopment  of  the  foreign  and 
domestic  trade  in  that  locality.  In  1825,  he  was  appointed 
United  States  consul  at  that  j^ort.  Three  years  later,  he  left 
his  business,  then  in  a  thri\ing  and  prosperous  condition,  in 
the  hands  of  his  ])artner,  and  went,  by  wa}-  of  the  Isthmus 
of  Panama,  tojiis  home  in  Newbury]:)ort,  from  which  he  had 
been  absent  six  years. 

He  married,  in  that  town,  Leb.  10,  i<S29,  Martha  Cierrish, 
daughter  of  Edmund  Bartlet,  Esq.  A  few  weeks  later  he 
embarked  with  his  wife  on  a  sailing  packet  from  New  York, 
bound  to  Carthagena,  and  continued  his  joui-ney  in  a  small 
schooner  to  Chagres  and  thence  up  the  ri\er,  exposed  to  the 
heat  and  glare  of  the  tropical  sun,  and  across  the  Isthmus  of 
Panama  on  mule  back,  and  then  down  the  coast  in  a  leaky 
boat  to  (iuayaquil. 

After  a  few  days  of  rest  Mr.  Wheelwright  resumed  his 
business  cares  and  duties,  but  found  to  his  dismay  that 
nearl)'  all  his  propert\'  had  been  lost,  during  his  absence, 
through  the  negligence  and  mismanagement  of  his  partner. 
Surprised,  but  not  discouraged,  bv  this  unexpected  dis- 
covery, he  ix'sohed  to  tianstei"  his  residence  to  X'alparaiso 
and  there  endeaxor  to  improve  his  shattered  fortune.  He 
purchased  of  his  brother-in-law  in  New  \'ork  a  small  \essel. 
which  he  named  "  P'ourth  ot  juh,"  and  ordered  her  to  be 
sent  to  him  on  the   west   coast   of   .South    Ameiica.      He  took 


//  -JLL/A M    II IIKKL  II  'R/GIl  T 


653 


command  of  this  vessel  immediately  after  her  arrival  at  Val- 
paraiso, and  was  soon  engaged  in  a  lucrative  business,  trans- 
porting specie  and  bullion  from  port  to  port  along  the  coast. 
In  1835,  he  commenced  his  great  task  of  establishing  a 
line  of  steamers  between  the  republics  of  Peru  and  Chili  and 
the  Isthmus  of  Panama.      "This  was  an  undertaking  of  much 


WILLIAM    WHEELWRIGHT. 


difficulty.      There   were    prejudices   to   be  overcome,    capital 

to  be  raised,  and  negotiations  necessary  to  be  carried  out, 

all  of  which  required  great  skill  and  patience."  He  went  to 
p:ngland  in  1837,  and  in  1838  the  Pacific  Steam  Navigation 
Company  was  formed  with  a  capital  of  ^{^"2 50,000;  and  two 
steamers,  each  of  seven  hundred  tons  register,  were  built   in 


654  OULD    XEWBURY 

1840  and  ordered  to  proceed  through  the  straits  of  Magellan 
to  the  ])()rts  of  X'alparaiso  and  Callao. 

After  the  arrival  of  these  steamers  on  the  Pacific  coast 
the  (Hfficult}'  of  procurini;"  coal  and  the  impossibility  of  pro- 
viding for  unexpected  repairs,  occasioned  by  an  untoward 
accident,  were  embarrassing  in  the  extreme  ;  but  these  obsta- 
cles were  ultimately  surnn)unted,  and  steam  communication 
was  established  with  Europe  by  way  of  the  Isthmus  of  Panama. 

Mr.  Wheelwright  next  turned  his  attention  to  the  imj^rove- 
ment  of  harbors  and  to  the  construction  of  whar\-es  and 
light-houses  for  the  better  accommodation  and  protection  of 
commerce.  In  order  to  facilitate  the  communication  between 
the  sea-coast  and  the  mining  district,  he  built  the  first  South 
American  railroad  from  Caldera  to  Copia]:)6,  and  afterward 
extended  it  nearly  forty  miles  into  the  interior  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  Andes. 

In  184 1,  he  })urchased,  for  the  use  of  his  father,  mother, 
and  sisters,  a  dwelling-house  on  High  Street  in  Xewburyport, 
Mass.,  which  remained  in  the  family  for  many  years.* 

Soon  after  this  date  he  became  interested  in  a  ])lan  to 
unite  \'alparaiso  and  Buenos  Ayres  by  a  railwa)'  oyer  the 
mountain  range  that  separates  Chili  from  the  Argentine 
Republic.  He  organized  a  staff  of  engineers  to  survey  the 
line.  The  work  was  completed  in  1859;  but  the  Chilian 
gox'ernment,  to  whom  the  project  was  submitted,  considered 
the  difficulties  too  great  to  be  successfull}-  oxercome,  and  the 
enterprise  was  abandoned. 

*  Ihis  house  was  built  by  Kbenezer  .Stockcr  nn  l.uid  piMxh.ised  nt  1  >ouas  Noycs,  wklnw  of 
Silas  Noyes,  as  stated  on  page  134  of  this  book. 

The  conveyances  from  Kbenezer  Stocker  to  Williain  Wheelwrisiht,  and  subsequently  to  his 
sister  Elizabeth,  are  as  follows:  — 

Oct.  31,  1S08,  Kbenezer  Stocker  to  Isaac  .Adams  (Essex  I  )eeds.  book  iS;,  page  200). 

March  11.  iSck).  Isaac  Adams  to  'riiomas  Carter  (Essex  Deeds,  book  1S6,  page  24). 

.April  24.  1.S24.  Thomas  Carter  to  Caroline  Smith  Oomez  (Essex  Deeds,  book  237,  page  i  iS>. 

Nov.  13,  1S26,  .Stephen  H.  ( loniez  and  Caroline  S.  ( '.oniez  tn  Ann  Adams,  widow  (Essex 
1  leeds,  book  243.  page  194). 

John  Wheelwright,  son  of  Al)iahani  Wheelwright,  married  his  cousin,  Ann  Adams,  widow. 

In  the  month  of  .April,  1S41,  John  Wheelwright  and  .Ann,  his  wife,  then  of  Brooklyn,  N.V.. 
sold  this  estate  to  William  Wheelwright,  and  gave  a  deed  of  the  same  lo  "  .Anna  Wheelwright, 
mother  of  tlie  said  William  Wheelwright "'  (book  32.S,  page  177). 

March  4,  1H42,  Ebenezer  Wheelwright  and  wife  .Anna  conveyed  tlie  land  with  the  buildings 
thereon  to  their  daughters  Elizabeth  and  Sus.in  Wheelwright  (sisters  of  William  Wheelwright). 

Susan  Wheelwright  died  March  24,  i!S(x>.  In  her  will  dated  March  31,  iS4,S.  and  pro\ed  the 
first  Tuesday  in  Mav,  iS'ki,  she  devised  all  her  real  estate  to  her  sister  Elizabeth. 


WILLIAM    WHEELWRIGHT  655 

In  i860,  he  resolved  to  visit  the  Argentine  Repubhc  and 
secure,  if  possible,  the  right  to  build  there  a  road  that  should 
ultimately  connect  the  Atlantic  with  the  Pacific  coast. 
After  three  years  of  patient  and  persistent  labor  he  suc- 
ceeded in  obtaining  from  the  government  grants  of  land  and 
certain  privileges  in  regard  to  the  importation  of  materials 
that  ultimatel}'  led  to  the  construction  of  the  Grand  Central 
Railroad  between  the  port  of  Rosario  on  the  Parana  River 
and  Cordova,  the  capital  of  the  province  of  that  name,  llie 
extension  of  this  great  work  in  the  immediate  future  will 
accomplish  the  object  for  which  Mr.  Wheelwright  labored 
earnestly  and  zealously  for  more  than  ten  years. 

His  last  important  enterprise  was  the  building  oi  the  rail- 
way connecting  the  port  of  P2nsenada  with  Huenos  Ayres. 
In  spite  of  serious  obstacles  and  innumerable  delays  the 
successful  completion  of  this  work  was  celebrated  with  great 
enthusiasm  at  Ensenada  Dec.   31,   1872. 

In  the  month  of  May,  1873,  ill  health  and  the  infirmities  of 
age  induced  Mr.  Wheelwright  to  take  passage  on  a  mail 
steamer  bound  to  P^ngland.  He  was  invigorated  somewhat 
by  the  voyage,  but  contmued  to  decline  after  his  arrival  in 
London,  and  died  Sept.  26,  1873,  surrounded  by  his  family 
and  some  of  his  most  intimate  friends.  His  body  was  taken 
to   Newburyport  and  buried  in  Oak   Hill  cemetery. 

His  will,  dated  June  17,  1871,  and  proved  the  third  Tues- 
day in  November,  1873,  directed  that  his  estate,  after  the 
payment  of  certain  debts  and  legacies,  should  be  divided  into 
nine  equal  ])arts. 

Two  of  said  nine  equal  parts  (of  my  estate)  I  give,  devise  and 
bequeath  to  Caleb  Gushing,  formerly  of  Newburyport,  now  of  Wash- 
ington, Robert  Codman  of  Boston,  Massachusetts,  Eben  F.  Stone  of 
said  Newburyport,  Charles  (i.  Wood,  formerly  of  Newburyport,  now 
of  Boston,  William  B.  Atkinson  of  Newburyport,  and  the  Mayor 
of  Newburyport,  for  the  time  being,  and  to  their  successors  as 
hereinafter  provided,  but  in  trust  nevertheless  and  upon  the  trusts 
and  for  the  purposes  more  fully  to  be  set  forth  in  detailed  directions 
to  be  drawn  up  by  me  hereafter,  having  for  their  object  to  benefit  my 
native  city  in  providing  a  fund,  the  income    of  which  shall  be   applied 


WflJJAM   WHEELWRIGIIT  657 

to  the  assistance  of  such  Protestant  young  men  of  the  city  of  New- 
buryport,  as  the  said  Trustees  shall  consider  deserving  and  merito- 
rious, in  obtaining  a  scientific  education.  Hut  in  case  bv  any  accident 
1  should  omit  or  neglect  to  prepare  such  detailed  directions  I  do  now 
provide  in  general  that  the  Mayor  of  the  said  city  of  Newburyport  for 
the  time  being  shall  always  be  e.\-officio  one  of  the  said  board  of  tru.s- 
tees.  and  as  the  others  die  or  resign  or  decline  their  trusts,  their  places 
shall  be  filled  by  a  vote  of  the  other  members  of  the  board,  from  time  to 
time,  and  that  the  fund  may  be  used  in  the  erection  and  endowment  of  a 
scientific  school  in  said  city,  provided  that  no  more  than  fifty  thousand 
dollars  shall  be  expended  upon  the  buildings  for  that  purpose,  or  if  the 
fund  is  inadequate  in  the  judgment  of  the  trustees  for  the  purpose  above 
named  it  may  be  allowed  in  whole  or  in  part  to  accumulate  until  a 
sufficient  sum  be  obtained,  or  if  it  is  better  in  the  judgment  of  the  said 
-trustees  the  whole  or  any  part  of  the  income  may  be  applied  to  the 
assistance  and  education  of  Protestant  young  men  of  that  city  as 
aforementioned,  and  in  general  the  fund  shall  be  conducted  and  used  by 
the  said  trustees  in  such  manner  as  in  their  judgment  and  full  discretion 
shall  best  accomplish  the  purpose  which  I  have  in  view.  But  in  case  I 
shall  prepare  the  detailed  directions  above  referred  to,  all  the  foregoing 
provisions  shall  be  subordinate  to  the  said  detailed  directions. 

The  bequest  to  the  trustees  abo\-e  named  now  amounts 
to  the  sum  of  5375,000.  The  annual  income  is  expended 
in  the  payment  of  tuition  and  certain  other  expenses  of 
students  from  Newburyport  attending-  the  Institute  of  Tech- 
nology in  Boston. 

William  and  Martha  G.  (Bartlet)  Wheelwright  had  three 
children,  namel}' :  — 

Maria  Augusta,  born  in  \'alparaiso.  Chili.  Oct.  18.  1S31. 
Marian,  born  in  Valparaiso.  Chili.  Oct.  18.  1833. 
William,  born  in  Newburyport,  May  29.  1840. 

Marian  died  in  Newburyport,  Dec.  18,  1835,  and  William 
died  at  Kew,  near  London,  p:ngland,  Oct.  18,  1862. 

Maria  Augu.sta  Wheelwright  married,  in  St.  George's 
Church,  in  Hanover  Square,  London,  England,  in  1854, 
Mr.  Paul  Krell,  of  the  Duchy  of  Mecklenburg,  Schwerin, 
Germany. 

After  the  death  of  her  father  the  house  and  land  on  High 
Street,    in    Newburyport,    then     owned    by    Miss     Elizabeth 


658  OULD   iXEWBCKY 

Wheelwright,  was  conveyed  to  Mrs.  Krell  hy  deed  dated 
June  I,  1874  (Essex  Deeds,  book  906,  page  4). 

Maria  Augusta  (Wheelwright)  Krell  died  at  Oatlands  Park, 
near  London,  Feb.  11,  1886.  In  her  will,  dated  I^'eb.  22, 
1877,  and  proved  the  third  Monda)'  in  May,  1886,  she 
devised  the  above  described   propert)'   to   her   husband. 

May  17,  1886,  Paul  Carl  Luis  l-:mil  Krell,  of  Roslyn 
House,  Oatlands  Park,  in  the  county  of  Surrey,  in  the  King- 
dom of  Great  Britain,  conveyed  to  Martha  G.  Wheelwright, 
of  Newburyport,  widt)w,  for  her  life,  and  after  her  death  to 
the  Society  for  the  Aid  of  Aged  and  Lidigent  Females  of 
Newburyport,  the  land  and  buildings  conveyed  by  PLlizabeth 
Wheelwright  to  Maria  Augusta  Krell,  June  i,  1874;  also 
orchard  and  j)asture  land  formerly  belonging  to  Sarah  and 
Rufus  Wills  (book  1181,  page  138). 

Mrs.  Martha  G.  (Bartlet)  Wheelwright  died  in  Newbury- 
port Aug.  30,  1888,  aged  eight)'-four  ;  and  the  house  that  she 
occupied  at  the  time  of  her  decease  passed  into  the  posses- 
sion of  the  Scjciety  for  the  Relief  of  Aged  Females,  and  has 
since  been  maintained  as  a  home  where  women  in  destitute 
circumstances  are  provided  with  shelter  and  support. 


HANNAH   F.   GOULD. 


Zaccheus  (lould,  of  Bovingdon,  in  the  parish  of  Hemel 
Hempsted,  county  of  Hertford,  England,  was  born  about  the 
year  1589,  and  came  to  New  England  between  the  years 
1636  and  1638.  He  settled  in  that  part  of  Ipswich,  Mass., 
which  was  afterward  through  his  efforts  set  off  into  a  sepa- 
rate town  under  the  name  of  Topsfield,  and  died  there  about 
1670. 

Benjamin  Gould,  a  descendant  of  the  fifth  generation,  was 
born  in  Topsfield  May  15,  175 1.  At  the  beginning  of  the 
Revolutionary  War  he  marched  from  Topsfield  with  thirty 
minute  men,  and  participated  in  the  fight  at  Eexington  April 
I9>  1775-  He  received  a  bullet-wound,  which  left  a  conspic- 
uous scar  on  his  cheek  for  the  remainder  of  his  life.  Some 
verses  suggested  by  this  incident  were  written  by  his  daugh- 
ter, Hannah  E.  Gould,  entitled  "The  Scar  of  Lexington." 

Benjamin  Gould  was  made  a  captain  in  the  Continental 
Army,  and  was  subsequently  engaged  in  the  battles  of  White 
Plains,  Bennington,  and  Stillwater,  and  had  command  of  the 
main  guard  at  West  Point  when  Arnold  fled  and  Andre  was 
captured.  July  19,  1781,  he  married  Grizzel  Apthorp, 
daughter  of  (icrshom  and  Hannah  Elagg,  and  commenced 
housekeeping  in  Lancaster,  Mass.  The  children  by  this 
marriage  were  :  — 

John  Flagg.  born  June  26.  1782  ;   died  in  Mexico  April  21.  1S28. 

(irizzel  Flagg,  born  P'eb.  3.  1784:   married  Harvey  Casey. 

Esther,  born  Oct.  3.  1785:   married  Henry  \V.  Fuller. 

Benjamin  Apthorp.  born  June  15.  1787:   died  Oct.  24,  1859. 

Hannah  Flagg.  born  Sept.  3.  1789:   died  Sept.  5.  1865. 

Rebecca,  Sarah,  and  Marv,  born  in  1790:   died  in  infancy. 

Elizabeth,  born  July  17,  1791  :    married  Antonio  Rapallo,  of  New  York. 

Genshom  Flagg.  born  in  1793  •   died  Jan.  17,  1840. 


HAA'NAH   F.    GOULD  66 1 

Benjamin  (icnikl  removed  from  Lancaster,  Mass.,  to  New- 
buryport  with  his  wife  and  children  some  time  during  the 
year  1800.  On  the  twelfth  day  of  April  of  the  same  year 
Samuel  Clement  and  Joseph  Clement  of  Newburyport, 
yeomen,  sold  to  John  Pearson,  of  Newburyport,  merchant, 
for  $423.33,  a  lot  of  land  bounded  on  the  north  by  land  of 
Moses  Coffin,  on  the  east  by  land  of  the  grantee,  on  the 
south  by  land  of  John  Lee  and  Widow  Couch,  and  on  the 
west  by  Charter  Street.  Xo  buildings  were  mentioned 
in  the  conveyance  (Essex  Deeds,  book  169,  page  260). 
Although  Charter  Street  was  evidently  in  existence  at  this 
date,  it  was  probably  only  a  private  wa)-.  Coffin,  in  his 
History  of  Newbury,  and  Mrs.  p:.  Vale  Smith,  in  her 
History  of  Newburyport,  both  state  that  Charter  Street 
was.  laid  out  and  accepted  by  the  town   in    1805. 

Nov.  20,  1 8 10.  John  Pear.son  .sold  this  land  (no  buildings 
mentioned),  for  51,182.75,  to  John  V.  Gould,  bricklayer,  of 
Newburyport  (book  192,  page  105).  'Phe  house  now  .stand- 
ing on  this  land  was  undoubtedly  built  by  Mr.  Gould  soon 
after  he  came  into  possession  of  the  property.  Financial 
difficulties  compelled  him  to  submit  to  a  sale  of  both  house 
and  land  to  David  Peabody.  This  deed  was  dated  Aug.  20, 
181  3,  and  the  estate  was  sold  subject  to  a  mortgage  of  $2,050 
to  Dr.  Micajah  Sawyer,  recorded  in  book  202,  page  132. 

June  13.  181 5,  at  sheriff's  sale,  Benjamin  A.  Gould,  of 
Boston,  bought  the  propert}',  subject  to  the  mortgage  from 
David  Peabody  to  Micajah  Sawyer,  for  $2,100  (book  206, 
page  217).  Notwithstanding  the  changes  in  ownership,  Ben- 
jamin (iould  with  his  family  remained  in  the  house  ;  and  his 
son,  Benjamin  Apthorp,  born  in  Lancaster  June  15,  1787, 
and  graduated  at  Harvard  in  18 14,  used  his  first  earnings  to 
purchase  the  house  where  his  father,  mother,  and  sisters 
lived.  He  retained  the  title  to  the  property  until  his  death. 
He  was  for  many  years  the  principal  of  the  Boston  Latin 
School,  but  was  obliged  to  relinquish  teaching  on  account 
of  ill  health.  He  married,  Dec.  2,  1823,  Lucretia  D.,  daugh- 
ter of  Nathaniel  and  Lucretia  D.  Goddard.  After  two  years 
spent   in  foreign   travel  he  returned  to   Boston,   and  devoted 


662  OULD   XElVin'KY 

his  time  and  attention  to  the  I{ast  Incha  inijjorting  business. 
He  died  Oct.  24,  I1S39. 

The  heirs  to  his  estate  retained  the  property  until  the 
decease  of  Miss  Hannah  F.  Gould,  who  was  the  last  survivor 
of  the  family  in  Xewburyport.  Dec.  4,  1865,  the  house  with 
the  land  under  and  adjoining  the  same  was  sold  to  Susan  W. 
and  Sophronia  and  Anna  B.  Balch,  of  Brighton,  Mass.  The 
deed  of  conveyance  is  recorded  in  book  696,  page  193. 

May  20,  1880,  the  property  was  sold  to  its  present  owner, 
Mrs.  Lucy  A.  Snow,  widow  of  the  late  Dr.  George  W. 
Snow. 

Hannah  Flagg  Gould,  born  in  Lancaster,  INhiss.,  Sept.  3, 
1789,  came  to  Newburyport  with  her  father  in  1800;  lived 
for  more  than  fifty  years  in  the  house  (No.  13  Charter 
Street)  built  by  her  brother,  John  Flagg  Gould ;  and  died 
there,  unmarried,  Sept.  5,  1865.  She  was  buried  in  the 
family  lot  at  the  New  Hill  burying  ground  b}'  the  side  of 
her  father,  mother,  and  one  brother. 

She  was  a  frequent  contributor  to  periodical  literature,  and 
published  her  first  volume  of  poems  in  1832,  a  second  in 
1836,  and  a  third  in  1841  ;  also  a  collection  of  prose  sketches 
entitled,  "Gathered  Leaves,"  in  1846;  and  at  a  later  date  a 
volume  of  original  and  selected  poems  under  the  title  of 
"  The  Diosma." 

In  some  brilliant  '' jcii  d'csprit^'  \'erses,  written  for  the 
entertainment  of  a  few  personal  friends,  and  not  intended  for 
publication,  she  i)ictured,  in  a  sportive  vein,  the  j^eculiarities 
and  characteristics  of  some  of  the  beau.x  of  that  day.  Since 
her  death  these  "  Lpitaphs  "  have  been  printed  and  widely 
circulated.  The  one  relating  to  Caleb  Cushing  is  often 
quoted  :  — 

Lie  aside  all  ye  dead. 

For  in  the  ne.xt  bed 

Reposes  the  bodv  of  Cushiim': 

He  has  crowded  his  way 

Through  the  world,  as  they  say. 

And  even  though  dead  will  be  pushiui;. 


IIAXXAJI   F.    GOCLI)  663 

Cushing's  reply  was  equally  witty  and  effective:  — 

Here  lies  one  whose  wit 

Without  wounding  could  hit, — 

As  green  grow  the  grasses  above  her  ; 

She  has  sent  every  beau  to  the  regions  below 

And  now  she's  gone  there  for  a  lover. 

Among  her  more  serious  poems  there  is  one,  suggested  by 
a  casual  incident  at  Plum  Island,  that  is  worthy  of  a  place  at 
the  close  of  this  brief  sketch  of  her  life.  It  is  entitled  "  A 
Name  in  the  Sand,"  and  reads  as  follows  :  — 

Alone  I  walked  the  ocean  strand  : 
A  pearly  shell  was  in  my  hand  : 
I  stooped  and  wrote  upon  the  sand 

My  name,  the  year,  the  da\-. 
As  onward  from  the  spot  I  passed. 
One  lingering  look  behind  I  cast  : 
A  wave  came  rolling  high  and  fast. 

And  washed  my  lines  awav. 

And  so,  methought,  'twill  shortly  be 
With  every  mark  on  earth  from  me. 
A  wave  of  dark  oblivion's  sea 

Will  sweep  across  the  place 
Where  I  have  trod  the  sandy  shore 
Of  time,  and  been  to  be  no  more, 
Of  me  —  my  day  —  the  name  I  bore. 

To  leave  nor  track,  nor  trace. 

And  yet,  with  Him,  who  counts  the  sands. 
And  holds  the  waters  in  his  hands. 
I  know  a  lasting  record  stands 

Inscribed  against  my  name. 
Of  all  this  mortal  part  has  wrought. 
Of  all  this  thinking  soul  has  thought. 
And  from  these  fleeting  moments  caught 

For  glory  or  for  shame. 


CALEB  GUSHING. 


On  the  westerly  side  of  High  Street,  a  few  rods  below 
the  head  of  Federal  Street,  stands  the  house  that  Caleb 
Cushing  owned  and  occupied  at  the  time  of  his  death.  It 
was  built  at  the  beginning  of  the  present  century  by  Richard 
Pike,  who  bought,  Jan.  i6,  1810,  five  acres  of  land  of  Wood- 
bridge  G.  Hunt,  of  Newburyport,  for  $5,000  (Essex  Deeds, 
book  188,  page  127);  also,  between  three  and  four  acres 
adjoining  the  same  on  High  Street,  Newburyport,  of  Na- 
thaniel Carter  (book   194,  page   171). 

Richard  Pike  died  June  2,  1827,  leaving  a  widow.  Alary 
Pike,  and  children  as  follows  :  — 

Martha  Pike,  who  married  Roger  S.  Howard  March  22.  1832. 
.Sarah  Jane  Pike,  who  married  Samuel  B.  .Stone  May  30.  (831. 
Rev.  John  Pike,  who  married  Deborah   Adams  Aug.  11.  1841. 
Mary  Boardman  Pike,  who  married  Bezer  Latham  July  28,  1852. 
Elizabeth  Ann  Pike,  who  married  Isaac  H.  Boardman  Nov.  28.  1843. 

The  inventory  of  his  estate  mentions  "  dwelling-house  with 
about  twelve  acres  of  land  on  High  Street,  in  Newbury, 
apj^raised  at  S5,000."  "  Dwelling-house  and  small  lot  of  land 
on  High  Street,  lately  owned  by  Martha  Pike  (the  first  wife 
of  Richard  Pike),  deceased,  appraised  at  S8oo." 

Oct.  II,  1833,  Samuel  B.  Stone  and  wife.  Sarah  Jane 
Stone,  conveyed  tlieir  interest  in  this  property  to  Roger  S. 
Howard  and  Martha  Pike  Howard,  his  wife,  and  Mary 
l^oardman  Pike.      This  deed  is  recorded  in  book  273,  page  83. 

Mr.  Howard,  with  his  wife  and  othci-  nu-mbers  of  the 
family,  occupied  the  house  mitil  June  i,  1846,  when  it  was 
sold  to  Solomon  Haskell  (book  410,  page  271).  .April  27, 
1849,  Solomon  Haskell  soUl  the  land,  with  the  buildings 
thereon,  to  Caleb  Cushing.  of   Xewbur)])ort   (book   410,  page 


CALEB    GUSHING  665 

238)  ;  and  the  same  day  Roger  S.  Howard,  of  Thetford,  Vt., 
and  Martha  V.  Howard,  his  wife,  by  separate  deeds  conveyed 
to  Caleb  dishing  all  their  right  and  title  to  the  property 
(book  410,  page  239,  and  book  413,  page  281 ). 

This  house  and  land,  with  other  estates  in  Xewbur}',  were 
annexed  in  1851  to  the  town  of  Newburyport.  Among  the 
distinguished  citizens  who  have  lived  within  the  limits  of 
these  two  towns  since  the  first  settlement  at  Parker  River, 
none  have  occupied  more  important  or  more  honorable  posi- 
tions in  public  life  than  Mr.  Gushing.  "He  was  born  in  a 
house  recently  standing  in  East  Salisbury,  Mass.,  near  the 
junction  of  the  semi-circular  road,  sometimes  called  Mudnock 
Road,  with  the  old  highway  "leading  to  the  mill  "  and  to  the 
town  of  Amesbury.  He  was  a  lineal  descendant  of  Matthew 
Gushing,  who  was  born  in  England  in  1589,  and  sailed  from 
Gravesend,  April  26,  1638,  in  the  ship  "Diligent,"  of  Ips- 
wich, and  arrived  in  Boston  August  10  of  that  )'ear.  Mat- 
thew Gushing  settled  in  Hingham,  where  he  died  Sept.  30, 
1660.  John  Gushing,  born  in  England  in  1627,  was  a  son 
of  Matthew  Gushing,  and  came  to  America  with  his  father. 
He  settled  first  at  Hingham,  but  soon  removed  to  Scituate. 
Rev.  Galeb  Gushing,  born  in  Scituate  in  1672,  was  a  son  of 
John  Gushing.  He  came  to  Salisbury  in  May,  1696,  and  was 
ordained  minister  of  the  Eirst  Parish  Nov.  9,  1698.*  He 
died  Jan.  25,  1752,  in  the  eightieth  year  of  his  age,  and 
fifty-si.xth  of  his  ministry. 

Galeb,  son  of  Rev.  Galeb  Gushing,  was  born  in  Salisbur}' 
Oct.  10,  1703. 

Benjamin,  son  of  Galeb,  was  born  in  Salisbur)-  Jan.  19,  1739. 

John  Newmarch  Gushing,  son  of  Benjamin,  was  born  in 
Salisbury  May  18,  1779. 

John  Newmarch  Gushing  married  Lydia  Dow,  of  Salisburv, 
April  I,  1799.      The  children  by  this  marriage  were:  — 

Caleb,  born  in  Salisbury  Jan.  1  7.  iSoo:  died  in  Newburyport  Jan.  2.  187Q. 
Lydia,  born  in  Newburyport  Aug.  13,  1805  ;   died  in  Newburyport  April 
21.  1 85 1. 

*  "  Mr.  Synis  preacht  ye  ordination  Sermon  and  gave  ye  right  hand  of  fellowship.  Mr. 
Cotton  gave  ye  charge  and  vvth  ym  Mr.  Rolf  and  Mr.  Clark  Imposed  hands."  Thi.s  was  recorded 
hy  Rev.  Caleb  dishing  in  the  records  of  the  First  Church  at  Salisbur\',  Mass. 


CALEB    GUSHING. 


CALEB    CUSHIXC  667 

Captain  Cashing  was  an  active  and  enterprising  ship-mas- 
ter, deeply  interested  in  commercial  affairs.  He  removed 
with  his  wife  and  son  Caleb  to  Xewburyport  in  1802.  His 
wife,  Lydia  Dow  dishing,  died  Xov.  6,  18 10,  and  he  mar- 
ried, Jan.  29,  181 5,  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Nicholas  and 
]\Iary  Perkins^  "The 'children  by  this  second  marriage  were 
as  follows  :  — 

Mary  Anna,  born  March  4.  1816:    died  Aug.  31.  1S31. 
Philip  Johnson,  born  Dec.  11.  1818:  died  Sept.  29.  1846. 
John  Newmarch.  i)orn  Oct.  20,  1S20. 
William,  born  Aug.  10.  1823:   died  Oct.  16.  1875. 
Sarah.  l)orn  Aug.  10.  1823:   died  May  9.  1826. 
Elizabeth,  born  in  July.  1826:   died  Sept.  [9.  1828. 

Caleb  dishing  was  fitted  for  college  by  Michael  Walsh,  a 
famous  teacher  of  that  day,  who  kept  a  private  school  in 
Xewburyport.  He  entered  Harvard  in  1813,  and  graduated 
in  the  summer  of  181 7.  Fcnir  years  later,  he  was  admitted 
to  practice  as  attorney  in  the  court  of  common  pleas.  He 
opened  an  office,  and  began  his  professional  career  in  Xew- 
buryjjort.  Nov.  23,  1824,  he  was  married,  by  Rev.  John 
Andrews,  pastor  of  the  First  Religious  Society  in  Newbury- 
port,  to  Caroline  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Judge  Samuel  S. 
Wilde  of  the  supreme  judicial  court  of  Massachusetts.  She 
died  Aug.  28,  1832,  leaving  no  issue.  Mr.  Cushing  did  not 
marry  again. 

Prominent  in  his  profession  as  a  lawyer,  he  was  also  deeply 
interested  in  public  affairs,  and  was  a  frequent  contributor  to 
the  newspapers  and  periodicals  of  the  da}-.  In  1833  and 
1834,  he  represented  Xewburyport  in  the  legislature.  In 
November,  1834,  he  was  elected  representative  to  congress 
and  subsequently  re-elected  three  times  in  succession  to  the 
same  office.  At  the  close  of  his  fourth  term,  in  May,  1843, 
he  was  appointed  commissioner  to  China  and  envoy  extraordi- 
nary and  minister  plenipotentiary  of  the  United  States  to 
the  court  of  that  empire. 

After  his  return  to  Newburyport  from  this  mission,  he  was 
again  elected  a  member  of  the  legislature  of  Massachusetts. 
In  January,  1847,  he  organized  the  only  regiment  that  went 


668  OL'LD   XEU'BURY 

from  Massachusetts  to  participate  in  the  Mexican  War.  He 
was  elected  colonel  of  the  regiment,  and  in  April  of  that  year 
he  was  commissioned  brigadier-general. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  he  returned  to  Xewbur\|)()rt,  and 
in  1849  bought  the  house  and  land  former!)-  owned  and 
occupied  by  Richard  Pike,  as  stated  in  the  conveyances 
referred  to  on  pages  664  and  665. 

In  185  I,  he  was  again  a  member  of  the  legi.slature,  and  was 
instrumental  in  securing  the  passage  of  an  act  incor]:)orating 
and  establishing  the  city  of  Newburyport.  The  inhabitants 
of  the  new  municii)alit\",  appreciating  his  serxices  and  recog- 
nizing his  pre-eminent  abilitw  unanimoush'  elected  him  the 
first  mayor  of  the  cit)'. 

In  the  year  1852,  he  was  appointed  an  associate-justice 
of  the  supreme  judicial  court  of  Massachusetts,  and  ser\ed 
in  that  capacity  until  March,  1853,  when  he  accepted  the 
position  of  attorney-general  of  the  Ignited  States  in  the  cabi- 
net of  President  Pierce. 

After  a  residence  of  four  years  at  Washington,  he  returned 
to  Newburyport  in  April,  1857,  and  soon  after  opened  a  law 
office  in  Boston.  In  i860,  he  was  president  of  the  Demo- 
cratic convention  that  met  in  Charleston,  S.  C,  and  after- 
ward in  Baltimore.  In  the  fierce  political  contest  that 
followed,  Mr.  Cushing  took  an  active  part,  earnestly  advocat- 
ing the  election  of  John  C.  Breckenridge  to  the  office  of 
president  of  the  United  States.  The  abolition  of  shwery  and 
the  dangers  that  threatened  the  life  of  the  nation  were  forci- 
bly and  eloc[uenth'  discussed.  The  result  of  the  election, 
though  disappointing  to  hini.  was   not   unexpected. 

At  the  begmning  of  the  C"i\il  War,  Mr.  Cushing  tendered 
his  serxices  "in  an\'  capacit\',  howexei"  humbli",  in  which  it 
might  be  possible  for  him  to  contribute  to  the  public  weal," 
but  (iovernor  Andicw  declined  to  a])i)oint  him  tt)  an_\'  posi- 
tion of  inHuence  in  the  .State.  The  national  administration, 
howc\'er,  found  him  an  able  and  ethcient  achiser  in  almost 
every  department  of  the  goxenunent,  and  his  large  acquaint- 
ance with  inteinational  law  renderetl  his  serxices  especiallx' 
x'aluabk-  in  the  settlement  of  ciuestions  relating  to  the  rights 
of  neutiMl  nations  or  soxereivn  states. 


CALEB    CUSHIXG  669 

The  half-tone  print  on  the  next  page,  taken  from  a  negative 
made  in  1862,  is  an  accurate  picture  of  his  residence  in 
Newburyport  as  it  was  at  that  date.  Mr.  Gushing  himself, 
with  two  personal  friends,  is  standing  at  the  entrance  to 
the  driveway  leading  to  the  house,  and  above  the  roof  floats 
the  Hag  that  was  daily  displayed  during  the  continuance  of 
the  war  as  a  symbol  of  his  loyalty  and  fidelity  to  the  princi- 
j^les  of  constitutional  government. 

In  1866,  Mr.  Gushing  purchased  a  fine  estate  in  Virginia, 
where  he  resided  for  many  3'ears,  in  order  that  he  might  be 
near  the  departments  at  Washington.  Nov.  30.  1868,  he 
sold  his  house  in  Newburyport  to  his  brother,  William 
Gushing. 

In  1872,  he  was  appointed  one  of  the  counsel  to  present 
the  claims  of  the  American  goxernment  before  the  tribunal 
that  assembled  at  (Geneva  early  in  the  spring  following.  In 
the  preparation  of  this  case  "  he  evinced  a  depth  of  knowl- 
edge, an  accurate  power  of  detail,  a  patience  of  research,  a 
readiness  to  labor,  a  zeal  for  justice  and  right,  which  aston- 
ished and  delighted  all  who  were  associated  with  him." 

In  1874,  the  chief-justice  of  the  .supreme  court  of  the 
United  States  died,  and  President  Grant  nominated  Mr. 
Gushing  to  fill  this  vacancy  on  the  supreme  bench.  G)bj ac- 
tions were  urged  against  his  confirmationon  political  grounds, 
but  no  one  denied  his  judicial  learning  and  legal  fitness  for 
the  place  or  questioned  his  ability  to  honorably  discharge  the 
duties  of  that  high  ofifice.  At  the  request  of  Mr.  ^Gushing 
the  nomination  was  withdrawn,  and  he  was  then  appointed 
and  confirmed  as  minister  to  Spain.  He  immediately  started 
on  his  diplomatic  mission,'  and  remained  abroad  for  three 
years,  with  the  exception  of  a  brief  visit  to  the  United  States 
in  the  summer  of  1876.  He  resigned  his  position  as  minis-' 
ter  at  the  Gourt  of  Madrid  in  February,  1877,  and  returned 
home  a  few  months  later. 

His  brother  William  having  died  meanwhile,  deeds  were 
drawn  up  and  signed  Dec.  5,  1877,  and  Jan.  10,  1878,  and 
recorded  in  the  registry  of  deeds,  book  990,  pages  6  and 
297,   conveying  the   house  and    land   on    High    Street,   New- 


RESIDENCE  OF  CALEB  GUSHING. 


CALEB    CUSH/XG  6j  1 

buryport,  from  the  estate  of  William  Cushiiig  to  Caleb 
dishing'.  Once  nK)re  in  the  possession  of  this  stately  house, 
the  distinguished  jurist  and  statesman  lived  quietly  and 
peacefully,  bus}-  with  professional  duties  until  his  death, 
which  occurred  on  the  evening  of  Jan.   2,    1879. 

He  was  buried  in  the  New  Hill  bur)ing  ground,  b\-  the 
side  of  his  wife.  ( )ct.  8,  1879,  a  memorial  address  was 
delivered  in  Cit\'  Hall,  Newbur}'port,  by  Hon.  George  B. 
Loring,  of  Salem,  In  the  printed  volume  containing  a  full 
report  of  the  exercises  on  that  occasion  the  reader  will  find 
a  more  extended  account  of  the  ])ublic  life  and  serxices  of 
Mr.  Gushing. 

His  great  attainments,  his  knowledge  of  international  law, 
and  his  recognized  ability  and  influence  in  public  affairs,  at 
home  and  abroad,  have  given  him  a  prominent  place  among 
the  distinguished  men  who  have  been  identified  with  "  ould 
Newbury"  from  its  first  settlement,  in  1635,  to  the  present 
da}'. 

The  house  where  he  lived  and  died  was  sold  Dec.  26,  1881, 
to  Mr.  Solomon  Bachman  of  New  York  City.  The  grounds 
surrounding  the  house  ha\e  been  enlarged  and  improved 
since  that  date,  and  the  house  itself  is  somewhat  changed 
externally,  but  still  retains  its  general  shape  and  appearance. 


CORNELIUS  CONWAY   FELTON. 


( )n  the  Bradford  road,  just  l^cyoud  the  Artichoke  Ri\er, 
and  near  Hiowii  Springs,  so  called,  there  stood,  until  ciuite 
recently,  an  old  house  in  which  Cornelius  Conway  Felton, 
president  of  Harvard  College,  was  born.  It  probably  was 
not  built  until  after  the  West  Parish  was  di\ided  ;  for,  the 
map  tlrawn  b\-  |ohn  Brown,  surxevor,  in  September,  1729, 
and  reproduced  on  page  392  of  this  bot)k,  gix'es  the  location 
of  the  house  owned  by  Joseph  Lowell  (No.  39),  and  also  the 
houses  belonging  to  the  estate  of  Joseph  l-5rown  (Nos.  40  and 
41)  ;  but  the  land  extending  from  the  easterly  side  of  the 
brook  to  the  residence  of  Joseph  Lowell  is  vacant.  This 
imoccupied  land  subsequently  came  into  the  possession  ot 
Samuel  Bartlett,  and  he  probabl}'  erected  the  house  described 
in  the  following  conveyances. 

( )ct.  16,  1 74 1.  Samuel  Bartlett,  ^d,  of  Newbur)-,  black- 
smith, for  ^'200,  sold  to  Abel  Morse,  of  Newbury,  yeoman. 
land  with  dwelling-house  thereon,  bounded  on  the  north  and 
east  b}'  land  of  Stephen  I'^mery,  on  the  south  by  the  Brad- 
ford road  and  a  grant  of  land  made  to  I'^benezer  Nolton  by 
the  town  of  Xewbur)'  for  a  tan-)'ard,  and  on  the  west  "by  the 
first  freehold  lot  now  in  the  ]:)ossession  of  widow  Abigail 
l^rovvn  "  (I'Lsse.x  Deeds,  book  .S2,  page  143). 

Oct.  30,  1745,  Abel  Morse  of  Chester,  N.  H.,  sokl  this 
propert)'  to  Ste])hen  i*",mcr}',  of  NewburN'  (book  SS,  page 
219).  It  remained  in  the  possession  of  the  l'jner\'  famih' 
until  I'cb.  2^,  l(S8s,  when  it  was  sold  to  )ar\is  11.  (iambi'cll; 
and  the  house,  being  in  a  ruinous  condition,  was  then  taken 
down  ( iCssex  I  )eeds,  book   1  146,  page  13). 

Subsecjuentlw  William  !•',.  Merrill  and  his  wile,  b'.liza- 
beth     K.,  in    her    own    I'ight,  sold    this    laud,    with    othei"   land 


COA\\'/-:/./rS    CONIVAY  FELTOX  673 

atljoiiiiiii;  tlic  same,  to  Thomas  C.  Thurlovv  (book  1390,  page 
509)  ;  and,  No\'.  13,  1893,  Thomas  C.  Thurlow  conveyed  the 
])n)pcrt3'  to  J.  Ai)i)leton  Hrown,  the  present  owner. 

An  oil  painting  by  Mr.  William  S.  Urown,  now^  in  the 
possession  of  Mrs.  Samuel  J.  Spalding,  of  Newburyport,  gives 
a  view  of  the  house  as  it  was  in  1882.  A  photographic  copy 
of  that  painting,  reproduced  by  the  half-tone  process,  will  be 
found  on  the  next  page.  At  the  present  time  the  cellar  wall, 
almost  concealed  from  xiew  by  a  thick  clump  of  trees  and 
shi"ubbery,  and  a  deep,  unused  well,  are  the  onl)-  memorials 
of  the  old  homestead. 

Nathaniel  Felton  was  born  in  l^ngland  about  the  year 
161 5.  He  came  to  Salem,  Mass.,  in  1633,  and  li\ed  there 
for  seventy-two  years.  He  married  Mary  Skelton,  daughter 
of  Rev.  Samuel  Skelton,  the  first  minister  of   Salem. 

Thomas  Felton,  of  the  fifth  generation  in  descent  from 
Nathaniel  Felton,  was  born  Aj^ril  13,  1759,  and  married, 
July  20,  1780,  Martha  Conway,  daughter  of  Cornelius  Con- 
way, of  Marblehead.  He  died  Aug.  12,  1795,  aged  36.  His 
widow  was  li\qng  in  Marblehead  in  1804,  and  signed  a  deed 
conveying  part  of  a  dwelling-house  in  that  town  to  Mary 
Beal,  widow  of  Samuel  Heal.  In  March,  1806,  she  was 
living  in  Newbury  and  gave  a  deed  of  the  other  part  of  the 
dwelling-house  to  the  same  j^erson.  She  e\'idently  remo\ed 
with  her  children  to  Newbur}'  in  1804  or  1805,  and  died  in 
Newburyport  previous  to  Jul}-  7,  1807. 

Her  son,  Cornelius  Conwa}-  P>lton,  was  born  in  Marble- 
head June  28,  1784.  He  was  nearly  twenty-one  years  of 
age  when  he  came  to  Newbury  with  his  mother.  He  found 
employment  as  a  wood  worker  in  the  manufacture  of  heavy 
wagons,  carts,  and  carriages,  and  soon  became  the  accepted 
suitor  of  Miss  Anna  Morse,  daughter  of  David  Morse,  who 
then  lived  in  a  house  on  Huse's  lane,  so  called,  nearly  oppo- 
site the  residence  of  William  Huse,  numbered  172  on  the 
map  of  the  West  Parish.  His  intention  of  marriage  was 
recorded  by  the  town  clerk  of  Newbury  Oct.  25,  1805. 

Mr.  David  Morse  was  a  blacksmith  b}'  trade,  and,  in  a 
shop  near  his  residence,  devoted  his  time  and  attention  to 
t-lne  making  and  repairing  of  iron-work  for  carriages. 


COKXEL/rs   COA'IVAV  FELTOX  675 

At  this  time  Stephen  Emery,  wht)  was  born  July  8,  1761, 
and  married  Hannah  Little  May  4,  1783,  was  a  licensed 
victualler  and  furnished  entertainment  for  travellers.  He 
occupied  the  house  bought  of  Abel  Morse  by  his  grand- 
father Colonel  Stephen  Emery  Oct.  30,  1745.  He  provided 
meals  and  lodgings  for  Mr.  Eelton  and  his  wife  ;  and  at  his 
house,  Nov.  6,  1807,  Cornelius  Conway  Felton,  Jr.,  was  born. 
Some  months  later  David  Morse  removed  to  a  house  that 
is  still  standing  on  the  Bradford  road,  near  the  entrance 
to  Coffin's  lane,  on  the  westerly  side  of  Pipe  Stave  Hill. 
The  Felton  family,  father,  mother,  and  child,  soon  after 
removed  their  household  goods  to  this  new  home  ;  and  for 
several  years  the  two  families  were  united  in  one  household 
under  the  same  roof.  And  there  a  second  son,  Samuel  Morse 
Felton,  was  born  July  17,  1809. 

The  town  records  furnish  but  little  information  in  regard 
to  the  subsequent  movements  of  the  Felton  family.  A 
few  facts  gathered  from  other  reliable  sources  indicate  that 
the  father,  although  a  hard-working  and  industrious  man,  was 
barely  able,  with  the  most  rigid  economy,  to  provide  the 
necessaries  of  life  for  his  wife  and  children.  Soon  after 
his  marriage,  he  started  in  business  as  a  coach  and  wagon 
builder,  but  the  sudden  disappearance  of  a  trusted  partner 
involved  him  in  financial  difficulties,  from  which  he  did  not 
extricate  himself  for  many  years.  Sept.  16,  18 14,  he  enlisted 
in  a  company  of  militia  that  was  stationed  at  Plum  Island 
for  several  months  during  the  war  with  Great  Britain  to  pre- 
vent the  landing  of  troops  from  British  vessels  off  the  coast. 
Mrs.  Mary  (Hale)  P'mery,  widow  of  Rev.  Samuel  M.  Emery, 
D.  D.,  has  in  her  possession  a  receipt,  dated  Newbury,  Jan. 
14,  1 81  5,  signed  by  Cornelius  C.  P>lton  and  twenty-five  or 
thirty  other  able-bodied  citizens,  for  wages  paid  them  for 
this  service  by  P^liphalet  Emery. 

In  the  month  of  P"ebruary  following,  Mr.  F"elton  removed, 
with  his  wife  and  children,  to  Saugus,  Mass.,  and  there  occu- 
pied a  house  near  the  residence  of  Dr.  Abijah  Cheever,  an 
eminent  physician  of  that  town. 

At    that    date,   young    Cornelius    P'elton    was    only    seven 


676  OULD   XFJVPL'RY 

years  of  age.  He  was  quick  to  learn,  and  soon  developed 
studious  habits.  He  attracted  the  attention  of  Dr.  Cheever, 
who  became  interested  in  his  education  and  [;-ave  him  his 
first  lessons  in  Latin.  He  advised  him  to  pursue  a  thorou^li 
and  systematic  course  of  study.  This  advice  was  eagerly 
accepted,  and  \oung  Felton,  with  the  consent  of  his  parents, 
was  placed  under  the  tuition  of  Simeon  Putnam,  of  Xorth 
Andoxer,  where  he  was  fitted  for  college. 

Cornelius  Conway  Felton  entered  Harvard  in  1823,  and 
graduated  four  }-ears  later.  Dependent  upon  his  own  indus- 
try for  support,  he  went  to  Geneseo,  in  the  western  part  of 
New  York  State,  and  took  charge  of  an  academy,  where  he 
remained  for  two  or  three  years.  Returning  to  Massachu- 
setts, he  accepted  the  position  of  Latin  tutor  in  Har\ard 
College. 

In  1832,  he  was  appointed  Professor  of  Greek,  and  in  1834 
I^liot  Professor  of  Greek  literature  in  that  institution.  He 
made  several  visits  to  Greece  for  the  purpose  of  study  and 
recreation,  and  jiublished,  in  a  volume  of  four  hundred  pages, 
an  interesting  description  of  that  classic  land.  Feb.  13. 
1856,  he  was  appointed  one  of  the  regents  of  the  Smith- 
sonian histitution  at  Washington,  D.  C.  After  the  resigna- 
tion of  Dr.  Walker,  Jan.  26,  i860,  he  was  elected  president 
of  Harvard  College,  and  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his  office 
F^eb.  16,  i860.  He  died  Feb.  26,  1862,  of  enlargement  of 
the  heart,  at  the  residence  of  his  brother  in  Chester,  Pa. 

He  married,  Aj^ril  12,  1838,  for  his  first  wife,  Mar}',  daugh- 
ter of  Asa  and  Mary  (Hammond)  Whitney.  She  died  April 
12,  1845,  aged  thirt}'.  P'or  his  second  wife,  he  married,  Sept. 
28,  1846,  Mar)-  Louisa,  daughter  of  Hon.  Thomas  li.  and 
Mar\-  (Perkins)  Car)',  of   B<iston.      He  had  two  daughters   b)- 

his  first  wife, 

Marv  -S..  Ijorn  April  20.   i.S3(;. 
Julia  \\'..  horn  .Vui;-.  i\.  1S42: 

and  two  sons  and  one  daughter  b\-  liis  seconti  wife, 

Louise  C  horn  .March  i().  1  S41;. 
Cornelius  C  horn  in  December.  1.S31. 
Thomas  C  horn  Sept.  15.  1S55. 

Mrs.  Ahu-y  (Gary)   l'\'lton  died  Ma)-  31,  1864. 


SAMUEL   MORSE   FELTON. 


In  a  house  that  is  still  standing  near  the  corner  of  Coffin's 
lane  and  the  Bradford  road,  on  the  westerly  side  of  Pipe 
Stave  Hill,  as  stated  in  the  preceding  sketch,  Samuel  Morse 
Felton,  son  of  Cornelius  Conway  and  Anna  (Morse)  Felton, 
was  born  July  17,  1809. 

When  the  Felton  famil)'  removed  from  West  Newbur}' 
the  journey  was  made,  in  a  large,  open  sleigh,  in  midwinter, 
through  Georgetown,  Boxford,  and  Danvers  to  the  town  of 
Saugus,  Mass.  ;  and  Samuel  Morse  Felton,  though  only  five 
and  a  half  years  of  age  at  that  date,  was  deeply  impressed  by 
the  incidents  of  the  journey  and  often  described,  in  after  life, 
the  post-rider,  who  passed  them  on  the  way,  waving  his  hat 
above  his  head  and  shouting  with  a  loud  voice,  "  Peace ! 
Peace !  "  * 

When  he  was  fourteen  years  old,  he  found  employment  as 
errand  boy  and  clerk  in  a  wholesale  and  retail  grocery  store 
in  Boston.  In  1827,  he  decided  to  prepare  for  college,  under 
the  tuition  of  his  brother  Cornelius  ;  and  in  1830  he  entered 
Harvard,  graduating  with  high  honors  in  1834.  Dependent 
upon  his  own  exertions  for  support,  he  took  charge  of  a 
private  school  that  had  been  established  b)'  Joseph  Lovering, 
in  Charlestown,  Mass.,  and  at  the  same  time  commenced  the 
study  of  law.  P"or  two  years  he  applied  himself  steadily  to 
this  work  ;  but,  finding  the  confinement  irksome  and  unfavor- 
able to  his  health,  he  concluded,  after  careful  consideration, 
to  turn  his  attention  to  the  more  congenial  study  of  civil 
engineering.  He  entered  the  office  of  Colonel  Loammi 
Baldwin  in    1836,  and  there  acquired  a  scientific  as  well  as  a 

*  Feb.  13,  1815,  news  ot  the  treaty  made  at  Ghent  reached  Newbury,  and  on  the  seventeenth 
day  of  the  same  month  the  treaty  was  ratified  by  President  Monroe. 


SAMCEL    MORSE    EELTOX  679 

practical  knowledge  of  the  art  of  constructing  railroads  and 
other  important  public  works. 

In  1837,  he  was  employed  in  taking  observations  and 
making  mathematical  calculations  at  the  Boston  and  Roxbury 
mill  dam,  to  be  submitted  as  evidence  in  a  strongly  con- 
tested suit  brought  against  the  Boston  Water  Power  Com- 
pany. In  1838,  after  the  death  of  Colonel  Baldwin,  he 
opened  an  office  on  his  own  account  and  soon  obtained  an 
extensive  and  lucrative  practice.  In  1842,  he  made  the  pre- 
liminary survey  for  the  Fitchburg  railroad,  and,  during  the 
next  two  or  three  years,  had  charge  of  the  work  of  construc- 
tion. In  1845,  he  was  elected  general  superintendent  of  the 
Fitchburg  railway  system,  which  position  he  continued  to 
hold  until  he  was  chosen  president  of  the  Philadelphia,  Wil- 
mington &  Baltimore  Railroad  in  1851.  At  the  beginning 
of  the  civil  war  this  road  was  the  only  direct  means  of  com- 
munication between  the  Northeastern  States  and  Washing- 
ton. A  plan  was  devised  by  some  of  the  sympathizers  with 
the  Southern  Confederacy  for  the  assassination  of  President 
Lincoln  on  his  way  through  Baltimore  previous  to  his  inaugu- 
ration. This  plot  was  discovered,  and  by  the  skill  and  sagac- 
ity of  Mr.  P'elton  was  completely  frustrated.  Arrangements 
were  speedily  and  carefully  made  to  take  the  president-elect 
to  Washington  in  safety.  A  brief  statement  of  the  facts 
connected  with  this  memorable  night-journey,  written  by  Mr. 
Felton  himself,  will  be  found  on  pages  59  to  65,  inclusive,  of 
Schouler's  History  of  Massachusetts  in  the  Civil  War. 

Subsequently,  the  burning  of  the  bridges  on  the  Phila- 
delphia, Wilmington  &  Baltimore  railroad  rendered  travel 
between  Philadelphia  and  Washington  difficult,  if  not  impos- 
sible, and  threatened  for  a  time  to  prevent  the  transportation 
of  troops  and  military  stores  for  the  defence  of  the  Capitol  ; 
but  this  danger  was  averted  by  the  energetic  and  successful 
efforts  of  Mr.  P"elton  to  open  a  more  easily  defended  route 
through  Annapolis. 

The  necessities  of  the  war,  the  demands  of  the  govern- 
ment, and  the  scarcity  of  engineers  and  machinists  rendered 
it    impossible    to'  conduct    the    rapidly    increasing    business 


68o  OULD   XEWBUKY 

with  promptness  and  despatch,  and  gave  rise  to  some  unjust 
criticisms,  which  occasioned  Mr.  Felton  great  distress  and 
anxiety. 

In  1865,  a  stroke  of  paralysis,  occasioned  by  overwork, 
compelled  him  to  abandon  business  cares  and  responsibilities 
and  seek  rest  and  recreation.  He  resigned  his  ofifice  ;  and, 
after  some  months  of  quiet  relaxation,  with  restored  health, 
was  induced  to  accept  the  presidency  of  the  Pennsyl\-ania 
Steel  Compan)',  the  first  organization  formed  for  the  puri)ose 
of  manufacturing  steel  rails  in  this  country.  Under  his  care 
and  management  this  com}mn}'  was  remarkably  ])ros]:)erous 
and  successful. 

He  married.  May  19,  1836,  for  his  first  wife,  h^eanor 
Stetson,  daughter  of  David  and  Sarah  (Lapham)  Stetson,  of 
Charlestown,  Mass.  She  died  Aug.  24,  1847,  aged  thirty- 
fcnn-.  He  married,  (3ct.  21,  1850,  for  his  second  wife,  Maria 
Low  Lippitt,  daughter  of  Warren  and  Eliza  (Seam ens)  Lip- 
pitt,   of  Providence,   R.  I.       He   had   three  daughters  b}-   his 

first  wife, 

Eleanor  .S..  horn  June  21.  1N37, 
Anna  M.,  born  Jan.  i.  1S39. 
Mary  S.,  born  Jan.  1  1 .  1  .S42  : 

and  one  daughter  and  three  sons  by  his  second  wife, 

Harriet  P..  l)orn  Aug.  16.  1851, 
.Samuel  M..  born  Feb.  3.  1853, 
Edgar  C,  born  April  13.  1858. 
Corneliu.s  C.  born  Dec.  29.  1863. 

Samuel  Morse  Felton  died  at  his  residence  in  Philadel])hia 
Jan.  24,  1889,  in  the  seventy-ninth  year  of  his  age. 


WILLIAM   LLOYD  GARRISON. 


In  a  house  still  standing"  on  the  easterly  side  of  School 
Street,  next  to  the  meeting-house  and  vestry  of  the  First 
Presbyterian  Society  of  Newburyport,  William  Lloyd  Garri- 
son was  born  Dec.  lO,  1805.  He  was  the  son  of  Abijah 
and  Fanny  (Lloyd)  Garrison  of  the  Jemseg,  on  the  river 
St.  John,  Queen's  County,  Province  of  Nova  Scotia.  In  the 
spring  of  1805,  his  parents  came  to  Newburyport,  bringing 
one  son  and  one  daughter  with  them.  They  hired  a  few 
rooms  in  a  house  on  School  Street,  owned  and  occupied 
by  David  Farnham,  who  was  the  captain  of  a  vessel  then 
employed  in  the  coasting  trade.  Martha  F'arnham,  his  wife, 
was,  in  later  years,  a  firm  and  steadfast  friend  of  the  Garrison 
family. 

The  half-tone  print  that  accompanies  this  sketch  represents 
the  house  as  it  was  before  any  alterations  were  made  in  its 
exterior.  There,  in  December,  1805,  William  Lloyd  Garri- 
son was  born;  there,  June  18,  1808,  his  sister,  Caroline 
Eliza,  died  ;  and  there,  in  July  of  the  same  year,  the  family 
circle  was  enlarged  by  the  birth  of  another  sister,  Maria 
Elizabeth. 

A  few  months  later  Abijah  Garrison  left  Newburyport  and 
went  back  to  New  Brunswick.  From  that  date  until  his 
death,  several  years  later,  he  contributed  nothing  to  the 
support  of  his  wife  and  family.  With  three  small  chil- 
dren dependent  upon  her,  Mrs.  Garrison  found  the  .struggle 
for  existence  exceedingly  bitter  and  severe.  In  181 2,  she 
removed  to  Lynn,  taking  her  oldest  son  with  her  to  learn 
the  shoemaker's  trade  ;  and  William  Lloyd  Garrison  went  to 
live  with  Deacon  Ezekiel  Bartlett  and  wife,  who  resided  at 
the  corner  of  Merrimack  and    Summer  streets,  Newburyport. 


WILL/ AM  LLOYD    GA A'A'LSOA^  683 

He  was  for  a  short  time  a  member  of  the  grammar  school 
at  the  west  end  of  the  mall,  but  was  soon  compelled  to 
leave  his  studies  in  order  that  he  might  be  of  assistance  to 
the  family  and  contribute  to  its  support. 

Those  who  knew  him  in  childhood  speak  of  him  as  a 
bright,  active  boy,  fond  of  all  boyish  sports.  He  played  at 
bat  and  ball,  and  is  said  to  have  led  the  South  End  boys 
against  the  "  North  Enders  "  in  the  snowball  contests  of  that 
day.  Barefooted,  he  trundled  his  hoop  all  over  the  town, 
and  at  the  same  time  found  frequent  opportunity  to  exercise 
his  skill  in  a  game  with  marbles.  Once,  with  a  playmate,  he 
swam  across  the  river  to  the  Great  Rock  on  the  Salisbury 
shore,  and  returned  safel}',  although  the  wind  was  blowing 
strongly  from  the  westward  and  the  tide  was  flowing  fast 
toward  the  sea  ;  and  once  he  nearly  lost  his  life  by  breaking 
through  the  ice  on  the  same  swift-running  river,  and  only 
reached  the  shore  after  a  long  and  desperate  struggle. 

In  October,  181 5,  Mrs.  Garrison  removed  to  Baltimore; 
and  her  sons,  William  Lloyd  and  James  Holley  went  with 
her.  After  a  few  months'  residence  in  that  city,  the  latter, 
tired  of  the  awl  and  the  last,  ran  away  from  his  master  and 
shipped  on  board  a  vessel  bound  to  a  distant  port.  William 
Lloyd,  homesick  and  anxious  to  return  to  his  old  school- 
mates and  friends,  was  early  in  18 17  again  placed  in  the 
care  and  custody  of  his  uncle  Ezekiel  Bartlett  and  again 
became  a  pupil  of  the  grammar  school,  Xewburyport. 

On  the  thirteenth  day  of  October,  181 8,  he  was  entered  as 
an  apprentice  for  seven  }-ears  to  Mr.  Ephraim  \\\  Allen, 
editor  and  proprietor  of  the  Xcioburyport  Herald.  He 
devoted  himself  with  diligence  and  enthusiasm  to  his  trade, 
and  became  so  expert  and  thorough  in  all  departments  that 
he  was  made  foreman  of  the  office.  During  his  apprentice- 
ship he  wrote  many  articles  in  prose  and  verse  for  the 
columns  of  the  Herald. 

When  General  Lafayette  visited  Newbury  port  in  August, 
1824,  Garrison  was  among  the  thousands  who  waited  in  a 
drenching  rain,  late  at  night,  to  see  the  old  soldier  and  shake 
him  by  the  hand.      Eighteen  months  later,  having  completed 


684  OULD    XEWBURY 

his  term  of  service  at  the  Herald  office,  he  j^urchased,  with 
the  assistance  of  his  old  employer,  Mr.  Ephraim  W.  Allen, 
a  newspaper,  established  in   NewburyjDort   by  Isaac  Knapp  in 

1825,  called  the  Essex  Conmnt,  and,  changing  its  name  to 
the  Free  Press,  issued  the  first  number  March  22,  1826,  with 
the  name  of  William    Lloyd  Garrison  as  editor  and  publisher. 

The  J-ree  Press  was  a  paper  of  four  pages,  with  five 
columns  of  printed  matter  to  each  page,  measuring"  nearly 
twelve  by  eighteen  inches  ;  and,  under  the  title  of  the  paper, 
was  the  motto,  "  Our  Country,  our  Whole  Countr\',  and 
Nothing  but  Our  Country."  In  its  columns  the  verses 
entitled,  "The  Exile's  Departure,"  written  by  Whittier  at 
the  beginning  of  his  literary  career,  were  printed  June  8, 
1826;  and  other  poetical  contributions  from  the  same  pen 
were  published,  from  time  to  time,  with  words  of  encourage- 
ment and  commendation  from  the  young  editor. 

In  the  month  of  September,  1826,  Mr.  Garrison  sold  his 
interest  in  this  weekly  paper  to  Mr.  John  H.  Harris,  who 
immediately  changed  its  policy  and  politics,  and  editorially 
advocated  the  election  of  Caleb  Gushing  to  Congress  in  place 
of  Hon.  John  Varnum,  whom  Mr.  Garrison  had  urged  in  the 
la.st  number.  During  the  political  campaign  that  followed, 
there  was  great  activity  and  excitement  in  Xewburyport. 
Mr.  Garrison  vigorously  opposed  the  claims  of  Mr.  Gushing, 
and  undoubtedly  was  influential  in  accomplishing  his  defeat. 

When  the  contest  was  over  Mr.  Garrison  determined  to 
leave  Newburyport  and  seek  employment  in  Boston.  He 
remained,  however,  long  enough  to  become  a  member  of  the 
Newburyport   Artillery  Company  ;  and,   then,   in    December, 

1826,  made  his  wa)^  to  the  great  city  that  was  for  more  than 
fifty  }'ears  his  adopted  home. 

July  4,  1828,  he  returned  for  a  brief  visit  and  read  the 
Declaration  of  Tndei")endence  at  a  celebration  of  the  national 
anniversary,  held  under  the  auspices  of  the  Artiller\-  Com- 
l)any,  and  also  contributed  a  spirited  ode  for  the  occasion. 

Sept.  28,  1830,  he  addressed  a  large  audience  in  llic  meet- 
ing-house on  Titcomb  Street,  then  under  the  pastoral  care  of 
kew  Dr.  Luther  !•".  Dinunick,  on  the   sul^ject   of  sla\erv,  antl 


WILLI  AM  LLOYD    GARRISOX  685 

was  announced  to  speak  again  the  next  evening  in  the  same 
place  ;  but,  on  account  of  the  excitement  created  by  his  first 
address,  the  doors  of  the  meeting-house  were  closed  against 
him.  He  wrote  a  brief  communication  to  the  Xcivbnrvport 
}hr(i/(t  published  Friday  morning,  Oct.  i,  1830,  in  which 
he  complained  of  the  unkind  and  uncivil  treatment  he  had 
received  from  his  former  friends  and  townsmen,  and  then  he 
hastened  back  to  Boston  to  make  preparations  for  the  pub- 
lication of  the  first  number  of  77ic  Liberator. 

Jan.  I,  1 83 1,  the  paper  appeared,  with  the  names  of 
William  Ll()}'d  (jarrison  and  Isaac  Knapp,  publishers,  and  the 
motto  :  "  Oni-  Country  is  the  World —  Our  Countryvien  ai'e 
all  Mankind^  Its  mission  was  set  forth  in  a  brief  address 
by  the  editor,  William  Lloyd  Garrison,  on  the  first  page,  con- 
taining the  following  statement  :  "  I  am  in  earnest  —  I  will 
not  equivocate — I  will  not  excuse — I  will  not  retreat  a 
single  inch  —  and   I   will   he  heard." 

The  details  of  his  life  after  this  important  event  are  well 
known  and  need  not  be  repeated  here.  When  persecuted 
and  calumniated,  by  friends  as  well  as  foes,  his  love  for  his 
birthplace  found  expression  in  the  following  sonnet  :  — 

Whether  a  persecuted  child  of  thine 

Thou  deign  to  own.  my  lovely  native  place  ! 

In  characters  that  time  cannot  efface. 
Thy  worth  is  graved  upon  this  heart  of  mine. 
Forsake  me  not  in  anger,  nor  repine 

That  with  this  Nation  I  am  in  di-sgrace  : 

From  ruthless  bondage  to  redeem  my  race, 
And  save  my  countrv.  is  mv  great  design. 
How  much  soe'er  my  conduct  thou  dost  blame 

(For  Hate  and  Calumny  belie  my  course). 
My  labors  shall  not  sully  thy  fair  fame: 

But  they  shall  be  to  thee  a  fountain-source 
Of  joyfulness  hereafter. —  when  mv  name 

Shall  e'en  from  tyrants  a  high  tribute  force. 

After  the  adoption  of  the  thirteenth  amendment  to  the 
constitution,  forever  abolishing  slavery  in  the  United  States, 
the  citizens  of  Newburyport  invited  Mr.  Garrison  to  visit  his 
birthplace    and     receive    the    congratulations    of    his    former 


686  OULD   NEWBURY 

townsmen  on  the  triumphant  cuhnination  of  his  life-work. 
He  accepted  the  invitation  ;  and,  at  the  request  of  the 
committee  of  arrangements,  delivered  an  address  Voh.  22, 
1865,  that  was  received  with  the  greatest  enthusiasm  by  an 
audience  that  filled  City  Hall  to  overflowing. 

During  the  next  ten  years  he  frequently  visited  the  home 
of  his  childhood,  and  evidently  cherished  fond  recollections  of 
the  place  despite  the  obloquy  and  calumnies  to  which  he  had 
been  subjected. 

The  sixtieth  anniversary  of  his  apprenticeship  to  lilphraim 
W.  Allen  occurred  Oct.  13,  1878.  He  celebrated  the  event 
by  visiting  Newburyport  on  the  morning  of  the  12th  and 
once  more  setting  type  in  the  office  of  the  Herald.  It 
proved  to  be  the  last  time  he  visited  the  town  or  handled 
the  composing-stick.  For  "  copy  "  he  took  three  of  his  own 
sonnets,  "The  Freedom  of  the  Mind,"  "Liberty,"  and  lines 
written  on  his  thirty-fifth  birthday.  He  put  these  sonnets 
into  type  with  amazing  rapidity  and  with  such  accurac}"  that, 
when  proof  was  taken,  they  were  found  to  be  without  a  single 
error.  They  appeared  in  the  columns  of  the  Herald  Monday 
morning,  Oct.  14,  1878. 

He  married,  Sept.  4,  1834,  Helen  Eliza  Benson,  daughter 
of  George  Benson,  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  His  children  by  this 
marriage  were  :  — 

George  Thompson  Garrison,  born  Feb.  13,  1836. 
William  Lloyd  Garrison,  born  Jan.  20,  1838. 
Wendell  Phillips  Garrison,  born  July  4,  1840. 
Charles  Follen  Garrison,  born  Sept.  9,  1842. 
Helen  Frances  Garrison,  born  Dec.  16,  1844. 
Elizabeth  Pease  Garrison,  born  Dec.  11.  1846. 
Francis  Jackson  Garrison,  born  Oct.  29.  1848. 

His  wife  died  Jan.  25,  1876.  He  died  at  the  residence  of 
his  daughter,  Mrs.  Henry  Villard,  Union  Square,  New  York 
City,  Saturday,  May  24,  1879,  and  was  bin-ied  Wednesday, 
May  28,  in  Forest  Hills  Cemetery  at  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 


JAMES  PARTON. 


On  the  northwesterly  corner  of  High  and  Oakland  streets 
in  Newburyport  stands  the  square  three-story  dwelling-house 
owned  and  occupied  by  James  Parton  at  the  time  of  his 
death. 

Nov.  2  1,  1796,  Thomas  Emery  bought  of  Moses  Moody 
forty-two  rods  of  land  in  Newbury,  now  Newburyport, 
bounded  on  the  east  by  land  of  the  grantor,  on  the  north  by' 
land  of  Cutting  Moody,  on  the  west  by  High  Street,  on  the 
south  "  by  land  I  have  reserved  for  a  road  two  rods  wide 
between  this  land  and  land  of  Dudley  A.  Tyng "  (Essex 
Deeds,  book  163,  page  t,^). 

Thomas  Emery,  son  of  Thomas  and  Ruth  (March)  Emery, 
was  born  Jan.  25,  1771.  He  married,  Nov.  2^,  1796,  Eliza- 
beth, daughter  of  Rev.  Moses  and  Elizabeth  Hale.  On  the 
land  bought  of  Moses  Moody  he  built  the  house  now  stand- 
ing there.  His  wife  died  May  29,  1803.  He  married,  Nov. 
27,  1806,  Mrs.  Margaret  Coffin,  widow  of  Joseph  Coffin,  and 
daughter  of  Robert  Sunderland,  of  Portland,  Me.  He  died 
April  II,  i860.  By  the  terms  of  his  will,  dated  April  10, 
1850,  and  proved  the  third  Tuesday  in  May,  i860,  he  gave 
the  rest  and  residue  of  his  estate,  after  the  payment  of  cer- 
tain legacies  and  annuities,  to  his  grandson,  Rufus  Emery, 
son  of  the  late  Plavius  Emery. 

Sept.  II,  1886,  Rufus  lunery,  of  Newburgh,  N.  Y.,  sold  to 
James  Parton,  of  Newburyport,  house  "and  part  of  the  land 
devised  to  me  by  my  grandfather,  Thomas  ICmery  "  (Essex 
Deeds,  book  1 1 8 1 ,  page  71). 

James  Parton  was  born  in  Canterbury,  P2ngland,  P'eb.  9, 
1822.      His   ancestors   were  originally   Erench    farmers   who 


JAMES   PARTOX  '  689 

emigrated  to  Canterbur}'  at  the  time  of  the  revocation  of  the 
Edict  of  Nantes  in  1685.  His  father,  James  Parton,  died  in 
July,  1826,  leaving  a  widow,  Ann  (Leach)  Parton,  and  four 
small  children.  The  following  year  Mrs.  Parton  came  to 
America,  with  her  two  sons  and  two  daughters,  and  settled 
in  New  York  City. 

Alfred  Parton,  the  oldest  son,  died  when  he  was  twenty 
years  of  age.  Mary  Parton,  the  oldest  daughter,  married 
William  Rogers  and  died  in  the  year  1872,  leaving  one  child. 
Ann  Parton,  the  youngest  member  of  the  family,  born  July 
27,  1823,  married  Rev.  John  Hodges,  and  died  at  W'averly, 
Iowa,  Oct.  20,  1893,  leaving  several  children. 

The  youngest  son,  James  Parton,  attended  the  public 
schools  in  New  York  City  for  seven  or  eight  years,  and 
completed  his  education  at  a  private  school,  kept  by  John 
Swinburne,  at  White  Plains,  W^estch ester  County,  N.  Y. 
Although  prepared  to  enter  college,  the  limited  income  and 
scanty  resources  of  the  family  compelled  him  to  abandon  his 
studies  in  order  that  he  might  contribute  something  to  their 
support.  He  found  employment  as  assistant  teacher  in  the 
school  at  White  Plains,  which  was  then  exceedingly  popu- 
lar and  prosperous.  John  Swinburne,  who  established  the 
school,  was  a  man  of  good  education.  He  was  an  interested 
and  regular  attendant  on  the  services  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church,  and  for  many  years  was  a  vestryman  of 
Grace  Church  at  White  Plains.  His  reputation  as  a  teacher 
attracted  pupils  from  far  distant  towns  and  cities. 

Mr.  Parton  retained  his  position  in  this  school  for  a  few 
years,  and  then  removed  to  Philadelphia,  where  he  was  asso- 
ciated with  Samuel  P2dwards  in  the  charge  of  an  English 
and  classical  school,  established  for  the  purpose  of  preparing 
boys  for  college. 

In  1847,  he  returned  to  New  York  and  was  soon  engaged 
by  Mr.  Nathaniel  P.  Willis  as  a  regular  contributor  to  the 
Home  Joitnial.  The  next  step  in  the  development  of  his 
literary  career  was  taken  a  few  years  later,  when  he  began 
collecting  materials  for  a  "  Life  of  Horace  Greeley,"  which 
was  published  in  1855.  The  success  of  this  effort  led  him  to 
devote  the  remainder  of  his  life  to  literary  pursuits. 


CA^y\y^ 


^    sJoj^ 


JAMES  PARTON  691 

Jan.  5,  1856,  he  married,  at  Hoboken,  N.  J.,  Sarah  Payson 
(W'ilHs)  Eldredge,  a  widow,  with  two  children.  She  was  well 
known  as  a  writer  under  the  fictitious  name  of  "  Fanny 
Fern."  For  man}'  )'ears  Mr.  Parton  and  his  wife  found 
remunerative  employment  as  contributors  to  the  Nciv  York 
Ledger,  then  under  the  management  of  Mr.  Robert  Bonner. 

In  1857,  he  published  the  "  Life  and  Times  of  Aaron  Burr," 
and  during  the  next  ten  years  he  wrote  the  "  Life  of  Andrew 
Jackson,"  "  General  Butler  in  New  Orleans,"  and  "  The  Life 
and  Times  of  Benjamin  Franklin," — in  addition  to  his  regular 
literary  work  and  frequent  contributions  to  the  monthly 
magazines  and  reviews  of  the  day. 

At  this  time  he  resided  at  No.  303  P^ast  Eighteenth 
Street,  New  York  City.  His  wife,  after  a  long  and  painful 
illness,  died  Oct.  10,  1872.  She  was  buried  in  INIount 
Auburn  Cemetery  at   Cambridge,  Mass. 

During  the  summer  of  1873  and  1874  Mr.  Parton  resided 
temporarily  in  Newburyport.  He  was  then  busy  preparing 
his  "  Life  of  Jefferson  "  for  the  press.  After  the  publication 
of  that  work  he  decided  to  purchase  a  house  and  establish  a 
home  for  himself  in  Newburyport. 

Meanwhile  his  mother,  Ann  (Leach)  Parton,  widow,  mar- 
ried for  her  second  husband  Mr.  William  Pillow.  By  this 
marriage  she  had  three  sons,  one  of  whom,  William  Pillow,  is 
still  living  near  Rochester,  N.  Y. 

P^eb.  20,  1875,  Mr.  Parton  bought  of  Daniel  P.  Pike  a 
small  lot  of  land  on  the  southeasterly  corner  of  High  and 
Oakland  streets,  Newburyport,  with  a  dwelling-house  stand- 
ing thereon.  P^eb.  3,  1876,  he  was  married  to  Miss  PTlen 
Willis  P:idredge  by  Rev.  Sarmtel-^  May,  pastor  of  the  P^irst 
Religious  Society  of  Newburyport.  The  marriage  ceremony 
was  repeated  in  New  York  City,  P^eb.  10,  1876,  Rev. 
Stephen   H.   Tyng,   D.  D.,  officiating. 

Mr.  Parton  occupied  the  house  on  the  southeasterly  corner 
of  High  and  Oakland  streets  until  1886,  when  he  purchased 
of  Rev.  Rufus  Emery  the  house  previously  described,  on  the 
opposite  or  northwesterly  corner  of  the  same  streets,  to  which 
he  removed  with  his  wife  and  family. 


692  OULD   XEWBL'RY 

During  his  residence  in  Newburyport  he  pubhshed  "  Cari- 
cature and  other  Comic  Art"  in  1877,  and  "The  French 
Parnassus,"  a  book  of  French  poetry,  in  1878.  In  1881, 
he  completed  his  "  Life  of  Voltaire,"  an  elaborate  work  of 
twelve  hundred  octavo  pages;  and  in  1883  he  sent  to  the 
press  a  book  entitled,  "  Noted  Women  of  Furope  and 
America."  In  1884,  he  collected  and  published  in  one 
volume  a  number  of  biographical  sketches  under  the  name, 
"Captains  of  Industry."  In  1885,  he  edited  and  contributed 
to  a  work  entitled,  "  Princes,  Authors,  and  Statesmen  of  our 
Time,"  and  in  1891  he  prepared  for  publication  the  second 
volume  of  the  "  Captains  of  Industry." 

He  was  methodical,  patient,  and  persistent  in  his  literary 
work,  and  social  and  agreeable  in  society.  On  the  platform 
or  in  the  parlor,  the  substance  of  his  speech  was  always  inter- 
esting and  entertaining.  He  saw  clearly  and  distinctly  the 
vital  things  of  life  either  in  his  heroes  or  in  the  persons  of 
his  own  time,  and  his  talk  was  seasoned  with  brilliant  and 
suggestive  thoughts. 

He  died  Oct.  17,  1891,  and  was  buried  in  Oak  Hill  Ceme- 
tery.    A  widow  and  two  children,  born  as  follows,  sur\i\e  him. 

Mal:)el  Parton.  born  Feb.  13.  1877. 
Huijo  Parton.  born  Dec.  12,  1878. 


EBEN    F.   STONE. 


The  brick  dwelling-house  on  the  northwesterly  corner  of 
State  and  Greenleaf  streets,  Newburyport,  was  built  by 
William  Woart  on  land  purchased  May  21,  1804,  of  John 
Greenleaf  and  others,  "heirs  of  the  late  Benjamin  Greenleaf, 
deceased"  (Essex  Deeds,  book  176,  page  237). 

This  house  and  land  were  taken  on  execution,  and  sold  at 
sheriff's  sale  July  8,  181 7,  to  Ebenezer  Moseley  (book  218, 
page  39). 

July  28,  1817,  Ebenezer  Moseley  gave  a  deed  of  the  prop- 
erty to  John  Balch  (book  218,  page  40). 

Sept.  8,  1 81 8,  John  Balch  sold  the  house  and  land  to 
Nicholas  Johnson,  Jr.  (book  218,  page  41). 

April  17,  1837,  "the  children  of  the  late  Nicholas  John- 
son, deceased,"  conveyed  the  above  described  estate  to  Enoch 
Mood}'  (book  299,  page  112). 

May  21,  1844,  the  children  of  Enoch  Moody  gave  a  deed 
of  the  property  to  Ebenezer  Stone  (book  344,  page  271). 

June  10,  1875,  Erances  A.  Adams  r/ (T?//.  (heirs  of  Ebenezer 
Stone)  sold  and  conveyed  their  interest  in  the  estate  to 
Eben  F.   Stone    (book   930,   page  93). 

From  and  after  this  last  date  the  house,  conveyed  by  the 
above-mentioned  deeds,  was  occupied  by  Hon.  Eben  F.  Stone 
until  his  decease  in  1895. 

Elias^  Stone,  who  married  Abigail  Long  in  Charlestown 
May  10,  1686,  was  the  paternal  ancestor  of  Eben  Francis 
Stone.  Elias^  and  Abigail  (Long)  Stone  had  fourteen  chil- 
dren. The  oldest  son,  Elias-,  born  June  19,  1687,  married, 
March  20,  1711-12,  Abigail  Waters. 

Elias^  and  Abigail  (Waters)  Stone  had  fifteen  children. 
A    son,   John-',   born   June    10,    1728,   was   married,   Oct.   24, 


EBEN  F.   STONE  695 

I75i,by  Rev.  Hall  Abbott,  to  Sarah  Miller.  John  Stone^ 
was  a  cooper  by  trade.  He  removed  from  Charlestovvn  to 
Newburyport  previous  to  1766. 

John^  and  Sarah  (Miller)  Stone  had  twelve  children.  A 
son,  libenezer^,  born  Jan.  27,  1759,  married  Sarah  Moody 
Nov.  19,  1784. 

Ebenezer'*  and  Sarah  (Moody)  Stone  had  six  children, — 
four  sons  and  two  daughters.  Their  oldest  son,  Ebenezer"^, 
born  Sept.  4,  1785,  married  Fanny  Coolidge. 

Ebenezer''  and  Fanny  (Coolidge)  Stone,  during  the  early 
portion  of  their  married  life,  lived  in  a  house  that  is  still 
standing  on  Merrimac  Street,  between  Green  and  Titcomb 
streets,  in  Newburyport,  and  there  the  following-named  chil- 
dren were  born  :  — 

Frances  Ann  Coolidge'^,  born  May  29.  i(S2i. 
Eben  Frances'',  born  Aug.  3.  1S22. 
Sarah  Moody'^  born  April  12,  1824. 
Jonathan  Coolidge^  born  Oct.  22;  1826. 

When  Eben  Francis  Stone  was  a  young  lad  he  attended  a 
private  school,  kept  by  Alfred  W.  Pike  in  a  building  then 
standing  on  the  northeasterly  side  of  Pleasant  Street,  opposite 
Brown  Square  and  just  beyond  the  present  City  Hall.  A 
few  years  later,  he  was  a  pupil  for  a  brief  period  in  the  High 
School  at  the  southerly  end  of  Bartlet  Mall.  When  four- 
teen or  fifteen  years  of  age,  he  was  placed  under  the  care 
and  tuition  of  Mr.  John  Maynard,  preceptor  of  Franklin 
Academy,  in  North  Andover,  Mass.,  and  was  there  fitted  for 
college.  While  a  student  at  North  Andover,  he  boarded 
with  Rev.  Bailey  Loring,  who  was  pastor  of  the  Unitarian 
Church  of  that  town,  and  father  of  the  late  Hon.  George  B. 
Loring.  He  entered  Harvard  College  in  1839,  '^"^^  graduated 
in  1843.  For  the  next  two  or  three  years  he  was  a  member 
of  the  Harvard  Law  School.  \\\  1846,  he  was  admitted  to 
the  bar  in  Essex  County,  and  soon  after  opened  a  law  office 
in  Newburyport,  and  began  the  practice  of  his  profession. 

He  married,  Oct.  26,  1848,  Harriet  Perrin,  daughter  of 
Augustus  and  Harriet  (Child)  Perrin,  of  Boston. 


EBEN  F.  STONE  697 

He  was  interested  in  public  affairs  and  took  an  active  part 
in  the  discussion  of  the  political  questions  of  the  day.  Imme- 
diately after  the  adoption  of  the  city  charter,  and  the  orj^ani- 
zation  of  the  first  city  government  in  Newburyport  in  1851, 
he  was  elected  president  of  the  common  council,  and  in 
1867  he  was  mayor  of  the  city  for  one  year.  He  served 
with  great  acceptance  as  State  senator  for  the  years  1857, 
1858,  and  1 86 1.  In  August,  1862,  he  was  authorized  by 
Governor  Andrew  to  enlist  recruits  for  a  regiment  to  be  sent 
to  the  Southern  States  to  aid  in  suppressing  the  rebellion. 
In  November  of  that  year  he  was  commissioned  colonel  of 
the  regiment  ;  and,  during  the  latter  part  of  December,  he 
embarked  with  his  men  on  board  the  transport  "  Constella- 
tion "  from  New  York  for  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi 
River.  The  regiment  was  attached  to  the  Nineteenth  Army 
Corps,  under  General  Banks,  and  participated  in  the  engage- 
ments at  Port  Hudson  in  the  months  of  May  and  June  follow- 
ing. After  the  surrender  of  Port  Hudson,  Colonel  Stone, 
whose  term  of  service  had  expired,  returned  home  with  the 
men  under  his  command. 

He  resumed  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Newbury- 
port ;  and,  in  1865,  entered  into  a  law  partnership  with 
Caleb  Gushing,  at  Washington,  D.  C.  P'or  about  a  year 
he  was  engaged  in  the  study  and  preparation  of  important 
cases  connected  with  the  various  departments  of  the  national 
government.  Finding  the  work  distasteful,  he  severed  his 
connection  with  Mr.  Gushing,  and  reopened  his  law  office  in 
Newburyport. 

In  1867,  1877,  1878,  and  1880,  he  represented  Newbury- 
port in  the  State  legislature,  and  took  an  active  part  in 
moulding  and  shaping  the  legislation  adopted  by  the  General 
Court.  In  1880,  he  was  elected  representative  to  the  forty- 
seventh  congress,  and  re-elected  in  1882  and  1S84.  As  a 
member  of  the  committee  on  rivers  and  harbors,  he  was  an 
earnest  and  zealous  advocate  of  the  Sandy  Bay  harbor  of 
refuge  at  Rockport,  Mass.,  and  through  his  efforts  the  first 
appropriation  was  made  by  congress  for  the  commencement 
of  that  work.      The    harbor,  when   completed,  will   be  one  of 


698  OULD    NEWBURY 

the  largest  in  the  world  (second  only  in  importance  to  that 
at  Cherbourg,  in  France),  and  will  owe  its  existence  to  the 
earnest  and  persistent  advocacy  of  Colonel  Stone.  He  sup- 
ported the  measure  in  an  able  speech  delivered  in  the  house 
of  representatives  June  9,  1884,  in  which  the  constitutional 
questions  involved  were  discussed  at  some  length,  and  the 
duty  and  importance  of  constructing  and  maintaining  harbors 
of  refuge  for  the  protection  of  our  vast  and  growing  com- 
merce was  strongly  urged  upon  the  attention  of  Congress. 

In  the  consideration  and  discussion  of  questions  of  great 
]iublic  interest,  where  principles  were  involved,  Colonel  Stone 
displayed  marked  ability.  He  was  learned  in  the  law,  and 
possessed  a  sound  and  discriminating  judgment  that  gave  him 
great  influence  with  his  friends  and  associates  at  the  bar. 
"  He  had  the  attainments  and  scholarship  of  the  jurist  who 
deals  with  justice  in  the  abstract  and  devotes  his  life  not  to 
the  practice  but  to  the  development  and  advancement  of  the 
law  as  a  science,  with  something  of  the  liberal  culture 
needed  to  protect  the  advocate  from  the  narrowness  and 
pedantry  of  the  case  lawyer." 

His  address  at  the  dedication  of  the  law  library  in  the 
brick  court  house  at  Salem,  Feb.  2,  1889,  has  been  warmly 
commended  as  "a  model  of  literary  excellence,"  and  his 
pajDcrs  on  Go\'ernor  Andrew,  Charles  Simmer,  7'ristram 
Dalton,  Theophilus  Parsons,  and  other  men  prominent  in 
political  life,  are  valuable  and  interesting  contributions  to 
the  literature  of  the  day. 

He  was  a  man  of  strong  convictions  and  dccidetl  ()i)inions, 
but  without  narrowness  or  bigotry.  In  private  life,  he  was 
modest  and  unassuming,  genial  and  hospitable.  With  a 
retentive  memory  and  a  high  sense  of  honor  and  integrity, 
he  also  possessed  great  i)ower  of  analysis,  and  displa)-ed 
remarkable  ability  in  the  delineation  of  ])ersonal  character. 
In  conversation,  he  was  interesting  and  instructi\'e  ;  and  in 
the  society  of  friends,  or  in  the  literary  clubs  of  wliicli  he 
was  a  member,  his  words  of  criticisiu  or  coiumendation  were 
always  helpful  and  effective. 

Domestic  in  his  tastes  and   habits  he  found   recreatit)n  in 


EBEX  F.  STONE  699 

books,  and  thoroughly  enjoyed  and  appreciated  the  comfort 
and  seclusion  of  home  life.  His  wife,  Harriet  (Perrin) 
Stone,  died  Dec.  31,  1889.  He  died  Jan.  22,  1895,  leaving 
three  daughters,  Harriet  Child  Stone  (now  Mrs.  Alfred 
Hewins,  of  Dedham,  Mass.),  Fanny  Coolidge  Stone,  and 
Cornelia  Perrin  Stone. 


OAK   HILL   CEMETERY. 


In  the  month  of  January,  1842,  Rev.  Thomas  B.  Fox, 
pastor  of  the  First  ReHgious  Society  of  Newburyport,  aided 
b}'  several  interested  members  of  his  own  parish  and  by  other 
prominent  citizens  of  the  town,  formed  an  association  for  the 
purpose  of  providing  and  maintaining  a  cemetery  of  suitable 
proportions,  to  be  tastefully  arranged  and  properly  cared  for. 

May  13,  1842,  the  subscribers  to  the  association  bought 
an  estate  on  the  southeasterly  side  of  the  Newburyport  turn- 
pike (now  State  Street),  belonging  to  the  heirs  of  the  late 
Moses  Brown,  at  the  rate  of  S200  per  acre. 

(3n  the  twentieth  day  of  June,  1842,  the  association  was 
organized  and  incorporated  under  the  Revised  Statutes  of  the 
Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts. 

The  grounds,  made  attractive  with  flowers  and  shrubbery, 
and  provided  with  suitable  avenues  and  walks,  were  conse- 
crated, in  the  presence  of  a  large  audience,  Thursday  after- 
noon, July  21,  1842.  The  exercises,  held  under  the  shade  of 
stately  and  venerable  oak  trees  still  standing  on  the  hillside, 
were  simple  and  impressive. 

Four  days  after  the  consecration,  Charles  Lord,  a  young 
son  of  Moses  Lord,  was  buried  near  the  spot  where  these 
exercises  were  held  ;  and  a  day  or  two  later  another  grave  was 
made  in  that  immediate  vicinity  to  receive  the  body  of  Sarah 
Miles  Greenwood,  wife  of  Hon.  George  Lunt. 

Other  interments  soon  followed.  The  total  number  of 
burials  in  the  cemeter)'  to  Jan.  i,  1896,  exceeds  thirty-six 
hundred. 

In  1855,  a  new  entrance,  more  convenient  and  accessible, 
was  made  by  constructing  a  short  avenue  from  the  old  turn- 
pike,  nearly    opposite    Greenleaf    Street,   through    land    pur- 


to: 


OULD   NEWBURY 


chased  by  the  proprietors  for  that  purpose.  This  new- 
entrance  was  subsequently  improved  and  ornamented  b}'  an 
impt)sing  granite  gateway,  erected  by  John  S.  Tappan,  l^sq., 
of  New  York  City,  at  his  own  expense. 

The  cemetery  has  been  enlarged  from  time  to  time  by  the 
purchase  of  adjoining  land  and  now  covers  an  area  of  twent}'- 
five  acres. 

Well-graded  walks  and  driveways,  sculptured  monuments 
of  artistic  design  and  workmanship,  ornamental  plants  and 
shrubbery,  render  the  place  interesting  and  attracti\'e  dining 
the  summer  months.  From  the  summit  of  the  hill,  looking 
westward,  a  wide  and  extended  view  of  the  surrounding  coun- 


GATEWAY    TO    OAK    HILL    CEMETERY  — THE    GIFT    OF 
JOHN    T.    BROWN,    ESQ. 

try  may  be  seen,  while  the  eastern  outlook  reveals,  half  hitlden 
through  the  trees,  glimpses  of  the  river  and  the  sea  beyond. 

A  new  avenue,  leading  from  Parker  Street,  and  connecting 
with  other  dri\ewa}'s  in  the  cemeter)',  was  laid  out  in  1894. 
At  the  entrance  to  this  axenue  a  gateway  has  recently  been 
erected  by  John  T.  l^rown,  l^sq.,  of  Newbur}-p()rt,  in  memory 
of  his  wife,  who  is  buried  within  sight  of  this  memorial  gift  of 
stone  and  bronze. 


The  number  of  grax'es  in  this  silent  cit_\'  ol  the  deaii  is  con- 
stantly  increasing.      Many  who   ha\e    been   ])rominenl   in  the 


OAA'  HILL    CEMEl^ERY  703 

mercantile,  professional,  or  social  life  of  Newburyport  rest 
from  their  labors  in  this  consecrated  ground.  A  few  names 
and  dates,  taken  from  the  monuments  standing  there,  read  as 
follows  :  — 

John   Bromfiekl,  born  in  Newburyport   April  11,  1779: 
died  in  Boston  Dec.  9.  1849. 

Founder  of  the  Bromfiekl  fund,  established  for  the  purpose 
of  providing  shade  trees  and  improving  the  sidewalks  of  the 
town  of  Newbur}'port. 

William  Bartlet,  born  in  Newburyport  Jan.  31,  i  74S ; 
died  Feb.  8,  1841. 

A  prominent  and  successful  merchant,  and  one  of  the 
founders  and  generous  benefactors  of  the  Andover  Theologi- 
cal Seminary. 

Rev.  John  Andrews,  born  in  Hingham  March  3,  1764: 
died  in  Newburyport  Aug.  17.  1845. 

For  more  than  forty  years  pastor  of  the  First  Religious 
Society  in  Newburyport. 

David  Perkins  Page,  born  in  Epping,  N.  H.,  July  4,  1810: 
died  at  Albany.  N.  Y..  January  i,  1848. 

Preceptor  of  the  English  High  School,  Newburyport,  and 
first  principal  of  the  State  Normal  School  at  Albany,  N.  Y. 

Rev.  Daniel  Dana.  D.  D..  born  in  Ipswich  July  24,  1771  ; 
died  in  Newburyport  Aug.  26.  1859. 

Pastor  of  the  First  and  Second  Presbyterian  churches, 
Newburyport,  and  president  of  Dartmouth  College,  Hanover, 
N.  H. 

Rev.  Luther  F.  Dimmick,  born  in  Shaftesbury,  \'t.,  Nov.  15.  1790; 
died  in  Newburyport  May  16,  1S60. 

For  nearly  forty-one  years  pastor  of  the  North  Congrega- 
tional Society  of  Newburyport. 


704  OULD    XKW'HUKY 

William  Wlicclwriy^ht.  horn  in  Ne\vl)uryporl  March  16.   i  79S ; 

died  in  London,  Knt;'..  Sej)!.  26.  1S73. 
/ 

l^'or  many  years  en^i;"ao"ccl  in  important  steamship  and  rail- 
road enterprises  in  Soutli  .America  and  founder  of  the 
"Wheelwright  l^'und,"  the  income  of  which  is  applied  to  the 
assistance  of  young  men  of  the  city  of  Newburyport  possess- 
ing the  necessary  qualifications  and  desiring  to  obtaining  a 
scientific  education. 


Rev.  Leonard  Withington.  Ijorn  in  Dorchester  Aug.  9,  1789; 
died  at  Newbury.  Mass.,  April  26,  1885. 

Active  pastor  of  the  First  Church  in  Newbury  from  Oct. 
31,  1 8 16,  to  Oct.  31,  1858  ;  afterward  senior  pastor  until  the 
day  of  his  death. 

Rev.  William  S.  Bartlet,  A.  M.,  born  in  Newburyport  April  8,  1809; 
died  in  Chelsea,  Mass.,  Dec.  12,  1883. 

For  fifteen  years  rector  of  St.  Luke's  (I^piscopal)  Church, 
Chelsea,  Mass.,  and  afterward  registrar  of  the  diocese  of 
Massachusetts  for  eighteen   years. 

Rev.  Randolpli  Camp])ell,  born  in  Woodl^ridge,  N.  J..  Dec.  31,  1809; 
died  in  Newl)uryport  Aug.  9,  1886. 

Pastor  of  the  Temple  .Street  Chiu-ch,  Newbiu")-i)ort,  from 
1837  to  1877. 

Hon.  (ieorge  Lunt.  born  in  Newburyport  Dec.  31.  1803: 
died  in  .Scituate.  Mass.,  Mav  16.  i,S,S5. 

Lawyer,  poet,  and  joiu'nalist. 

Rev.  Samuel  L.  Caldwell,  LL.  D..  Ixirn  in  N'ewi)uryport   Nov.   13.  1820; 
died  in  I'rovidence.   K.  !..  .Sej)!.  26.   1  S89. 

Pastor  of  the  l"'irst  Haptist  Church,  Bangor,  Me.,  and  of 
tlie  J^'irst  Ha[)tist  Church,  i'roxidence,  R.  1.  Professor  of 
ICcclesiastical  History,  Newton  'I'heological  Seminary,  and 
l)i"esident   of   Vassar  College   for  se\en   }ears. 


0.4 A'  HILL    CEMETERY  705 

James  Parton,  born  in  Canterbury,  Eng..  Feb.  9.  1822: 
died  in  Xewburyport  Oct.  17.  1891,  aged  69  years.  8  months. 

Biographical  writer  and  contributor  to  the  periodical  litera- 
ture of  the  day. 

Hon.  Eben  Francis  .Stone,  born  in  Xewburyport  Aug.  3.  1822  : 
died  January  22.  1895. 

A  successful  practitioner  of  the  law,  colonel  of  the  forty- 
eighth  Massachusetts  regiment  in  the  War  of  the  Rebellion, 
and  representative  to  congress  from  the  "Old  Essex"  dis- 
trict for  three  successive  terms. 

Near  the  entrance  to  the  receiving  tomb,  in  a  lot  recently 
conveyed  to  the  Xewburyport  Bethel  Society  by  John  T. 
Brown,  Esq.,  the  first  mate  and  crew  of  the  schooner 
"Florida"  of  St.  John,  X.  B.,  wrecked  on  Salisbury  Beach 
Feb.  9,  1896,  are  buried. 


APPENDIX 


APPENDIX. 


VESSELS  BUILT  ON  THE  MERRIMACK  RIVER  AND  REGISTERED 

AT  THE   CUSTOM    HOUSE,  NEWBURYPORT,  MASS., 

FROM   AUGUST   1,  1789,  TO  APRIL    1,   1793- 


Name. 


When  and  Where  Bitilt. 


Tonnage. 


Sloop              William 1 789 

Sloop              Katy 17S5 

Sloop  Three  Friends  ....  1785 

Schooner       Dolphin 17S4 

Brigantine     Hibemia 17S3 

Schooner       Hannah 1789 

Brigantine     Lively 1789 

Sloop              Sally 17S6 

Brigantine   .William 1783 

Schooner       Jdlm 17S8 

Sloop               I'nity 1785 

Schooner       Nancy 1785 

Brigantine     Fanny 17S5 

Sloop              Edmimd 1 7S8 

Brigantine     Essex 17S3 

Schooner       Polly 17S7 

Brigantine     Martha 1782 

Brigantine     Vulture 1 784 

Ship               William 1789 

Sloop              Beaver 1786 

Schooner       Betsey 17S5 

Schooner       Hope 1786 

Brigantine     Peace 1789 

Schooner       Industry 1786 

Brigantine     Hannah 1784 

Ship                Thomas 1784 

Sloop              Stork  1786 

Brigantine     Speedwell 1785 

Brigantine     Swan 17S4 

Brigantine     Industry 17S9 

Brigantine     Bee 17S3 

Brigantine     Poliy 1789 

Brigantine     Polly 1787 

Sloop              Hannah 1788 

Ship                Peace 1789 

Brigantine     William 1787 

Brigantine     Sally 1 785 

Brigantine     Polly 1 785 


Newbury  Benjamin  Luut  65 

NewburyiDort  Richard  Smith  Noyes  and  William  Noyes 90 

Aniesbury  William  Coombs 72 

Amesbury  Samuel  Coffin  70 

Newburyport  John  O'  Brien    108 

Newburyport  I'homas  Brown 82 

Salisbury  Moses  Brown 130 

Newburyport  John  Edwards  and  Joseph  Edwards 42 

,.T      ,            _»  I  Wm.  Peirce  Johnson,  Nicholas  Johnson,  and  \  „ 

Newburyport            rr          .    y  1  183 

■"^  I      Hannah  Johnson )  •^ 

Newbury  Moses  Brown 90 

Amesbury  Moses  Browii go 

Tap  .V,  rv  '  Daniel    Richards,   Zebediah    Famham,   and  I 

^  I      Amos  Atkinson )  ^ 

Newburyport  George  Searle  and  Joseph  Taylor 14S 

Salisbury  William  Bartlett 91 

Newburyport  Anthony  Davenport 143 

Amesbury  Amos  Noyes  and  Abner  Toppan 35 

Amesbury  Thomas  Thomas 182 

Newburyport  Elias  Hunt  and  Zebedee  Hunt 172 

Newbury  Moses  Brown 277 

Amesbury  David  Coats 87 

Amesbury  Charles  Goodrich  58 

Newbury  Benjamin  Perkins 66 

Salisbury  William  Coombs 175 

Newbury  Isaac  Plummer 75 

Bradford  Thomas  Thomas 184 

Newburyport  Thomas  Thomas 230 

Newburyport  William  Coombs  and  John  Coombs 91 

Newbury  Samuel  Batchelor 100 

Newburyport  Benjamui  Perkins  and  Abel  Greenleaf 17S 

Newburyport  William  P.  Johnson 206 

Newbury  William  Coombs  and  John  Coombs 143 

Amesbury  (ieorge  Searle  and  Joseph  Tyler  116 

Salisbury  Samuel  Bailey 159 

Amesbury  Benjamin  Shaw 80 

Amesbury  James  Bailey 235 

Salisbury  William  Bartlett ^ 166 

Newburyport  William  Johnson  and  Philip  Johnson 106 

Haverhill  Joseph  Stanwood 123 


7IO 


OULD   NEWBURY 


Class. 


II 'heu  and  M'here  Built. 


Oiuners. 


Toimage. 


Scliooner 

Ship 

Schooner 

Schooner 

I'.rigantine 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Sloop 

Brigantine 

Sloop 

Ship 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Sloop 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Schooner 

Sloop 

Schooner 

Ship 

Ship 

Scliooner 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Ship 

Brigantine 

Sloop 

Brigantine 

Ship 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Schooner 

Sloop 

lirigantnie 

I'rigantine 

Brigantine 

Schooner 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Schooner 

I'rigantine 

Brigantine 

Ship 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Schooner 


Susanna 

Russell 

Hope 

Hannah 

Pegg\- 

Hope 

H  ope 

Nancy 

}?etsey 

Ranger 

Janus  

Desire  

Sally 

Pomona 

Betsey  

Polly 

Success  

Joseph 

Hannah 

Susan 

Betsey 

Polly 

Peace  and  Plenty- 
Olive  Branch  .... 

Maria 

Hannah 

Hawk 

Eliza 

Sarah 

Peggy  and  Polly  . 
T\\  o  Brothers .... 

Martha 

Commerce 

Essex 

Mary  

Sally    

Three  Friends 

Fanny 

Hope 

Nabob 

Hancock 

Lydia 

Sally 

Stork  

Mercury 

Pegg\- 

Nancy 

Lydia 

lndu.stry 

Polly 

Mary   

William 

Two   lirothers 

Mary  

Two  Friends 

Mehitable 

Hawk 


Newbury 
Newburyport 

Salisbury 


Joseph  Wells 96 

William  Hartlett 198 

Joseph  Sevier 83 

William  Bartiett 63 

Benjamin  Willis 150 

John  Pettingal  and  Leonard  Smith 94 

Nathaniel  Nowell  and  Anthony  Davenport 125 

William  Gerrish  and  Paul  Gerrish 70 

Samuel  Coffin 140 

Robert  Stevenson 87 

William  Bartiett  147 

William  Bartiett iiS 

Offin  Boardman 152 

William  Bartiett  and  Moses  Brown 127 

Enoch  Peirce 92 

Benjamin  Harrod 68 

Nicholas  Johnson 147 

David  Dole 57 

Edmund  Sweat  140 

Joseph  Marquand 64 

Peter  Le  Breton 163 

William  Bartiett  66 

Joseph  Marquand  (prize) loi 

Elias  Hunt  and  Zebedee  Hunt 140 

Joseph  Marquand 61 

Zachariah  Atwood 99 

Moses  Brown 63 

Benjamin  Joy 421 

1  Benjamin  Joy,  John  Joy,  John  Coffin  Jones,  | 

I      and  Joseph  Russell i  '-" 

Laurence  Spitingfield 79 

\\'illiam  Wyer 13S 

John  Pettingel  and  Leonard  Smith 173 

Benjamin  Frothingham 173 

Joseph  Marquand  (prize  taken  in  ijSo) 30S 

Moses  Brown 166 

Joseph  Stanwood 88 

)  Uriah     Fletcher,    Alexander    Caldwell,    and  ( 

I      James  Merril t  ' 

William  Little 270 

Joseph  Sevier S3 

Ebenczer  Hale  (prize  taken  in  I'/Sq) 58 

Zachariah  Atwood ig 

Joseph  Stanwood  54 

William  i'eirce  Johnson  and  Philip  Johnson    ...  137 

William  Coombs 126 

Benjamin  .Shaw  and  Benjamin  Connor 127 

George  .Searle  and  Joseph  Tyler 60 

Samuel  Carr 51 

."^ainuel  Gray 152 

I  )avid  Coffin 75 

Joshua   Folinsbee 180 

Nicholas  Johnson   206 

Moses  Brown 277 

Stephen  Howard  and  Nathaniel  Butler 52 

Jonathan  Boardman 146 

George  .'^earle  and  Joseph  Tyler 68 

David  Coats 141 

Benjamin    Pirkins 63 


APPENDIX 


711 


itid  Where  Built. 


Tonnage . 


Schooner 

Sloop 

Schooner 

Schooner 

Sloop 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Brig 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Scliooner 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Ship 

Ship 

Brigantine 

Ship 

Brigantine 

Ship 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Sloop 

Brigantine 

Snow 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Brigantine 

Schooner 

Sloop 

Brigantine 

Schooner 

Sloop 

Ship 

Sloop 

Schooner 

Brigantine 

Sloop 

Brigantine 
Brigantine 
Schooner 
Brigantine 

Ship 

Brigantine 

Snow 

Sloop 


Joseph 

Merrimack 

Fame 

Maria 

Katy 

Maria 

Mercury- 

Rebecca 

Beaver  

F!etsey 

Catherine  

Sally 

Dolphin 

Two  Brothers.    . 

Francis 

Speedwell 

Stork  

Industry 

Sukey 

Polly 

Favorite 

Little  Cherub  . . . 

Henry 

Mary  

Elizabeth  Coats . 

Martha 

Nancy 

Polly   

Mehitable 

Indnstn,' 

Harriot   

Mary 

Betsey 

Patty 

H  ope 

Four  Sisters 

Eagle 

Dove 

Sally 

Fox 

Nancy 

Hope 

Three  Brothers. . 

Sally 

Edmiuid 

Unity 

Beaver 

Leonard  

Susannah  

Congress 

Boston  Packet.. . 

Mehetable   

Mehetable   

Hannah 


Newbury 

Haverhill 

Newbur\' 

Amesbun,' 

Newburj'jiort 

Salisbury' 

Newburyport 

Newbury 

Amesbury 

Salisbury 

Newburyport 

Amesbury 

Amesbury 

N  e  wburyport 

Newburyport 

Newbury 

Newburj'port 

Newbury 

Salisburj' 

Bradford 

Haverhill 

Bradford 

Newburyport 

Newburyport 

Salisbury 

Amesbury 

Newbury 

Newburj'port 

Salisburj' 

Haveriiill 

Newbur\'port 

Amesbury 

Salisbury 

Newburj'port 

Newburj'port 

Newburj'port 

Salisbury 

Salisbury 

Newburyport 

Amesbiuy 

Newburyport 

Salisbury 

Newburyport 

Newburyport 

Salisbury 

Amesbury 

Amesbury 
Amesbury' 
Newburj' 
Newburj' 

Salisbury 

Salisbury 

Salisburj' 


788     Amesbury 


David  Dole 57 

JNIoses  Gale 49 

William  Coombs 84 

RL  M.  Hays 69 

Richard  Smith  Noyes  and  William  Noyes 90 

Ebenezer  Stocker 70 

Joshua  Carter iSogf 

Samuel  Coffin 146 

David  Coats 87 

William  Eartlett 133 

Anthony  Da\'enport  and  Moses  Davenport 167 

John  Pettingal  and  Leonard  Smith 97 

Benjamin   Rogers 70 

Daniel  Richards  52 

Winthrop  Gray 174 

Samuel  Batchelor 142 

William  Coombs  and  Ebenezer  Wheelwright. . . .  126 

David  Coffin  and  Ebenezer  Stone 75 

Offin  Boardman 161 

William  Bartlett  and  Moses  Brown 66 

(  Samuel  Montgomerj'  Brown,  Josiah  Watson,  |  04 

j      and  Robert  Brown  Jameson  of  Virginia  . .  f  ^^555 

Thomas  Ramsden i8o|f 

William  Peirce  Johnson 20255 

Tristram  Barnard  and  David  Sears 23oJf 

John  Greenleaf 1405s 

Thomas  Thomas i8r 

Nathaniel  Balch 51 

IVIoses  Brown 159 

Mehitable  Coats — 

David  Hoyt  and  John  Carlton 4S 

Benjamin  .Shaw i  i4gs 

Edmund  Sweat 162I5 

(  I-^noch   Peirce,  John  Balch,  John  Pilsbury,  I  53 

I      and  John  Stanwood )  ^  "^ 

Edward  ISIilner 16355 

Anthony  Davenport  and  Moses  Davenport 125 

Thomas  Brown 1785! 

William  Gerrish  and  Enoch  Gerrish 71M 

William  Bartlett 76fg 

Joseph  Stanwood 88 

Philip  Coombs  and  William  Coombs 73ls 

George  Searle  and  Joseph  Tyler 84SI 

Joshua  Folinsbee 202IJ 

Joseph  Stanwood 77fi 

Samuel  Coffin 8055 

William  Bartlet    9155 

i  Edward   Toppan,   Nathan   Hoyt,  and  Jona-  I  ,9 

I      than  Coolidge  1  9  9^ 

John  Greenleaf 87^ 

John  Wells i43fl 

Jonathan  Boardman 95gf 

Timothy  Dexter  'SSgi 

(Edward   Davis,    John    Brazen,    and    David)  ,,_gb 

I      Hinkley I  ''♦^^ 

Timothy  De.xter  and  Samuel  Dexter 17185 

j  Same  as  above,  but  changed  from  a  brigan-  )  ^62 

{      tine  to  a  snow  1  '   '^ 

(  Theophilus   Bradburj'   and   Thomas   Wood-  |  3s 

(      bridge  Hooper j  ^'^'^ 


712 


OULD   NEWBURY 


Class. 


Name. 


M'hen  ami  Where  Built. 


Tojinagc. 


Schooner  Sally 1 792 

Ship  Kdward 1792 

Hrigantine  Hannah 17.SS 

Hrigantine  Harriett i7<;i 

Ship  Henry 171)1 

Hrigantine  Hannah 1792 

Hrigantine  Industry >792 

Hrigantine  Harriet 1792 

Ship  John 1792 

Sloop  Polly 1 792 

Hrigantine  Eliza    1792 

Schooner  Nymph  1792 

Ship  Harmony 1792 

Ship  Martha 1782 

Schooner  Hope 1783 

Hrigantine  Heaver 17S6 

Schooner  Hannah 1792 

Ship  Eliza 1792 

Hrigantine  Caroline 1792 

Ship  John 1792 

Ship  Congress 1792 

Ship  Fair  American ...  .  1792 

Hrigantine  Mary 1792 


Amesbury 
Newburyport 

Amesbury 

Newburyport 
Newburyiiort 
Haverhill 
Haverhill 

Salisbury 

Newbury 

Salisbury 

Haverhill 

Newburyport 

Newburyport 

Amesbury 

Newburyport 

Amesbury 

N  ewbury 

Haverhill 

Amesbury 

Newbury 

Newbury 

Newbury 

Salisburv 


Thomas  Brown 835I 

(  Joseph   Tavlor,    (Jeorge    Searle,    and    John  |  «« 

I      Donaldson I  "^'s? 

(  Theophilus     Hradbury,     Jr.,     and    Thomas  |  3s 

(      W'oodbridge  Hooper j  '"ss 

Henjaniin  Shaw 15495 

William  Pierce  20255 

Edward  Woodbery  and  John  Goodwin 1 1955 

Moses  dale  izqIb 

(  Theophilus   Bradbury   and   Thomas  Wood-  I  ,9 

I       bridge  Hooper j  5455 

Jeremiah  Kahler  20435 

(  Joseph    Wadleigh,    Israel    Merrill,     Robert  |  ,   ^^^ 

I      Morrell,  and  Jonathan  Webster I  '*' 

James  Reed  and  Robert  MacGregore   ^l^\t 

Moses  Brown 86|| 

Joshua  Carter 21855 

Thomas  Tliomas 181 

John  Pettingell 9455 

John  (Jreenleaf 134SS 

Offin  Boardman '04II 

Benjamin  Joy 299^5 

Josiah  .Smith 21 1/5 

Benjamin  Joy 49oi5 

'I'imothy  Dexter 'SSil 

Tliomas  Brown  and  Stephen  ( lorham 25235 

F>enjaniin   Willis ly'gs 


INDEX. 


NDEX. 


A  1 '.!'.(  )'1'T.  'x,5. 
Aberdeen,  Scotland,  410. 
Academy  Association,  Newbiiryport,  649. 
Academy  Building,  The,  649. 
Accidents,  520,  645. 
Acres,  37. 
Adams,    116,    1S8,    igS,    igg,   309,   310,  333,  335, 

410,  477,   491,   50S,    517,   53S,  539,  542.  543, 

554.  556.  573.  645.  654-  6&4.  693. 
John  Quincy,  333. 
Joseph,  50S. 
Advertisements,  560. 
.-Esop,  308. 

Agawam  (Ipswich),  Mass.,  9,  201. 
Aiken,  503. 
Akerman,  410. 
Albany,  N.  V.,  616,  703. 
Alexander,  134,  520. 
Alford.  England,  63S, 
Allen,  114,  135,  137,  138,  149.  2S2,  431,  496,  ii8, 

6S3,  6S4,  686. 
Allyne,  410. 
America,  201,  230,  342,  372,  407,  526,  527,  582, 

583,  587,  665,  692. 
Amesbury,  Mass.,  62,  63,  94,  218,  23c)-242.  244, 

272,   '345.  392,  394.  395.  4'i5.    47<"'-    4</>.    5^7, 

593.  *W3.  &05,  665,  709-712. 
Named,  394. 
Amesbury  Ferry,  94. 
Amherst,  457,  485. 
Amihust,  4S6. 
Amory,  57S,  599. 
Anabaptists,  100. 
Andover,    Mass.,    103,   283,   28S,   345,  496,   522. 

C'37-  f^Si.  703:  . 
Andover  Theological  .Seminary,  636,  703. 
Andre,  659. 
Andrew,  668,  697,  698. 
Andrews,  417,   440,  445-447,  597,  648,  650,  667, 

703  ■ 
Rev.  John,  440,  445,  447,  703. 
Andros,  45,  65,  114,  184,  185,  237,  253. 
Androscoggin  County,  Me.,  542. 
Andross,  186. 
Angier,  116,  130. 
Animals,  Domestic,  9,  11,  29. 
Annapolis,  Md.,  554,  679. 
Annis,   371,  373,  376,  384,  393. 
Anni\ersary  Celebration  of  A'ewburv,  173. 
Anthony,  543. 
Antigua,  643. 

Appleton,  241,  253,  28S,  315. 
Apropos,  549,  550. 
Apsley,  187. 
Apthorp,  404,  659,  661. 
Apthorp,  N.  H.,  544. 
Argentine  Republic,  654,  655. 
Arnold,   97,  162.  545,  640,  659. 
Arnold's  Expedition,  96,  97. 
Artichoke  River,  49,  50,  92,  95. 
'■  Ascutney,"  (ninboat,  2S1. 
Ash,  410. 
Ashby,  563. 
Assassination  of  President  Lincoln.  Attempted, 

679. 


Athens,  Ga.,  353. 

Atkins,    159,  396-400,  402,  404,   407,   409,   419, 

433.  532,  533.  535- 
Atkinson,  47,  77,    181,  280,  282,  387,  390,  411, 

510,  512,  542,  613,  655,  709. 
Atkinson,  N.  H.,  563,  57c. 
Attleborough,  Mass.,  561. 
Atwater,  317. 
Atwood,  568,  569,  6og,  710. 

Mrs.  Margaret,  609. 
Aubin,  610. 
Auctions,  617. 
Authors,  689-692. 
Autun,  France,  5S2. 
Ayer,  357. 

BABSON,  643. 
Bacheldor,  439. 

Bachman,  671. 

Badger,  18,  119,  142,  150,  iSi. 

Badger's  Corner,  142. 

Bagley,  272,  273,  359,  495,  575. 
Jonathan,  273. 

Bailey,    76,   106,   344,  349,  376,   37S,   393,    395, 
541,  550,  594,  709. 

Baily,  378,  495. 

Baker,  16. 

Balch,  195,  407,  410,  5S3,  662,  693,  711. 

Baldwin,  677,  679. 

Baley,  496,  497. 

Bailey,  392. 

Baltimore,  Md.,  668,  679,  6S3. 

Bancroft,  471. 

Bangor,  Me.,  13S,  22S,  616,  704. 

Banks,  697. 

Banister,  195. 

Bannister,  544,  637. 

Barbadoes,  W.  I.,  319,  640,  643. 

Barnard,  495,  564,  711. 
Rev.  Thomas,  564,  565. 

Barnstable,  Mass.,  327. 

Baron,  471. 

Barret,  405. 

Barrett,  244. 

Bartholomew,  291. 

Bartholomewe,  12.    ^ 

Bartlet,  2^,  2^,  j^i,  ^7,   3^.  376,  i'^.  594, 
S?5.  .S/^.   6>^.   6/1.   f/.S.   6.1^7^6^,   6/5,   ys, 
65<.  6j4.  6>f.  6a8,  6sj^,  ^jl6,.  ypi,  7/1.      ^ 
'William,  7J»5:       '^ 
Rev.  William  S.,  711(4. 

Bartlet  Mall,  6^i-b/i. 

Bartlett,  4,9,  17,  25,  92,  118-121,  127-129,  133, 
■  139,  140.  143,  145.  146.  1&2,  171,  214,  215, 
217,  222.  223,  230-241,  279,  359,  363,  365, 
3&7.  371,  373.  374.  37^.  3^1,  384.  388,  389, 
393.  394.  403.  437.  44'.  4^H.  47^.  49^.  5''4. 
577.  593.  599.  605.  fjiJ.  '^"4.  624,  672,  6S1, 
683,  709-711. 
Richard,  230-234. 

Bartlett's  Cove,  17,  92,  230. 

Bass,  3S6,  402-406,  408-411,  413,  414,  416,  418, 
419,  529. 
Rev.  Edward,  403-416. 

Basseterre,  Guadaloupe,  462. 


7i6 


INDEX 


Bassett,  57<)- 

Hatchelder,  77. 

liatchelor,  701).  711. 

Halt.  14,  264. 

Kayley,  235,  277,  2S7,  344,  375,  3S1,  390,  393, 
510.  563- 

r.ayly,  374- 

Beach,  Plum  Island,  220. 

Beachem,  487. 

Beal,  405,  673. 

Beane,  411.  447. 

Kev.  Samuel  C,  447. 

I'earcroft,  396,  397,  401,  402,  508. 

Beck,  125,  404,  416,  435,  510,  518. 

Beebe,  434. 

Beedle,  543. 

Beer,  So. 

Belcher.  114,  116,  36S-370,  523. 

Bell,  Bvfield  Church,  296. 

Belleville  Cemetery,  368,  387-390. 

Bells,  Church,  296,  386,  387,  413,  432,  442.  445. 

Bennett,  510. 

Bennington,  Vt. ,  659. 

Benson,  ()S6. 

Bentley,  411,  413,  416. 
Rev.  William,  411,  413. 

Bequests,  609,  637,  656,  657. 

Bermuda,  643. 

Bernard,  534. 

Berrey,  612. 

Berry;  339,  432.  435,  450,  510,  532,  533. 

Beverages,  22. 

Beverly,  Mass.,  585. 

Bible,   Reading  of,  435. 

Bibles,  521. 

Bigelow,  438. 

Bilsby,  England,  638. 

Birchen  Meadow,  184. 

Births,  First,  22,  23. 

Bishop,    104,   125,  129,  143,  151,  559,  S75-  576- 

Bishop  Stoke,  England,  252,  305,  313. 

Bitsfield,  464. 

Blackbmn,  479. 

Blackleach,   178,  179,  1S4. 

Blacksmiths,  673. 

Blaisdell,  401. 

Bloomfield,  iS. 

Blue  Anchor  Tavern,  go,  109,  175-1S8. 

Blunt.  503,  645,  646. 

Boardman,  38,  608,  664,  710-712. 

Boddily.  f)o8. 

Bolton,  523. 

P.omb-shell,  The  Knapp,  4S4. 

Bonaparte,  573. 

B.ond,  125,  139,  143,  152,  235. 

Bonde,  139,  233. 

Bonner,  hgi. 

Bordeaux,   France,  462. 

B)Oscawen,  N.  H.,  53,  386. 

Boston,  Mass.,  15,  28,  37,  38,  45,  47-49)  ''m,  65, 
76,  79,  85,  97,  loi,  103,  104,  108,  114,  140, 
147,  159,  173,  179,  183,  186,  187,  194,  201, 
203,  208,  211,  221,  227,  237,  245,  249,  250, 
252,  254,  258,  264,  266,  269,  273,  275,  276, 
294.  295.  3C'7.  3>3.  3'5-3'9.  323.  324.  327- 
329.  333.  336,  337.  343.  353.  35''.  374.  378, 
382,  383,  396,  402,  404-406,  411,  413,  410- 
418,  431,  432,  439,  440,  445,  447,  449,  450, 
457.  4.59.  467.  470.  47'.  47^  4S2,  487.  489. 
493-49^  498,  499.  5o3.  5>S.  527.  534.  537- 
543.  547.  550.  553.  554.  557.  55^.  5'".  5'>4- 
568,  577-579.  5'"*2,  583,  587,  594,  597,  ()ir., 
629,  638,  639,  641,  655,  657,  f)6i,  665,  676, 
("77.  f>79.  f>84.  685,  695,  703. 

Bosworth,  88,  640. 

Bounds,  10,  13,  21. 

Bovingdon,  England,  659. 

Bowditch,  503. 

Bowen,  447. 

Rev.  Charles  J.,  447. 

Bowley,  393. 

liowman,  178. 


Boxford,  Mass.,  457,  597,  677. 

Boydell,  253. 

Boynton,  317. 

Bradbury,  60,  222,  244,  331,  440,  442,  456,  471, 

473,  619,  ()23,  711,  712. 
Hon.  Theophilus,  440,  456. 
Bradford,  .Mass.,  95,  172,  288,  303,  339,  341,  344, 

348.  497.  542.  672,  675,  709-711. 
Bradstreet,  45,  55,   119,  124,  252,  253,  510,  512, 

518,  585. 
Brag,  487. 
Bragdon,  310. 
Braintree,  Mass.,  15,  564. 
Brattle,  405. 
Brazen,  711. 
Breck,  342. 
Breckenridge,  668. 
P.reeches  Bible,  230. 
Brewer,  2S3. 
Brick,  407. 
Brick-making,  40. 
Brickett,  152,  251,  344,  393. 
Bridge,  Over  Parker  River,  23,  83. 

Essex- Merrimack,  593-604. 
Bridger,  371,  372,  376,  377,  37S,  381,  384. 

John,  371,  372,  376,  377. 
Bridges,  23,  59-62,  67,  68,  79,  84,  104,  201,  217, 

223.  245,  530-539.  593-604- 
Briggs,  281. 

Brighton,  Mass.,  329,  662. 
Bristol,  England,  17,  121. 
Maine,  177. 
Massachusetts,  640. 
Rhode  Island,  640. 
Bristow,  293. 
Britt,  393. 

Brixton,  England,  169,  170. 
Brock,  495. 
Brocklebank,  170. 
Brockway,  649. 
Broglie,  583. 

Brooklyn,  N.  V.,  473,  654,  686. 
Bromfield,  1 16,  703. 

John,  703. 
Brown,  14,  21,  22,  90,  95,  97,  102,  103,  loS,  iii, 

118,   119,   121,   133,   134,   143,  153,  162,  163, 

187,  217,  230,  281,  287-290,  329,  339,  349, 

357.  365.  371.  373-379.  3S1,  3S3.  384,  390- 

393.  406,  421,  422,  432,  439,  441,  449,  481, 

495.  510-512,   524.   542.   5f*S,   594.   595.   599. 

605,  627,  632-637,  641,  672,  673,  695,  701, 

702,  705,  709-712. 
John,  28S-290. 
Moses,  632-637. 
Thomas,  287. 
Brown  Square,  633-636. 
Brown  Square  House,  636. 
Brown  .Street,  133. 
Brown's  Landing,  595. 
Browne,  139,  142,  233,  24S,  249,  264,  287,  373, 

629,  632. 
Brussels,  353. 
Bryn  Mawr,  Pa.,  300. 
Buckman,  303, 
Buenos  Avres,   Argentine   Republic,  652,  654, 

655. 
Buffon,  437. 
Bulfinch,  619. 

Bunker  Hill,  Battle  of.  542. 
P.urbank,  4<)5,  543. 
Burbenk,  265. 

lUirdrop  Maur,  England,  165. 
P.urgess.  491. 
Burke,  543. 

P.urlingtcm,  Mass.,  247,  259. 
Burnet,  323. 
Burns,  520. 
P.urnside.  353. 
Burr,  316,  6c)i. 
Burrill,  495. 
Burrough,  599,  635. 
Burroughs,  350,  417,  594. 


INDEX 


717 


Burt,  155,  156. 

Burying-grounds,  23,  24,  110-115,  362-367,  605- 

611.     See  Cemeteries. 
Burying-ground,  in  Newbury,  First,  23,  24. 
Burying-ground  at  Sawyer's  Hill,  362-367. 
Burying-ground,  New  Hill,  605-609. 
Burying  Hill,  610,  611. 
Butfer,  353,  710. 
Butman,  37. 
Byfield,  116,  117,  255,  203-296. 

Col.  Nathaniel,  293,  295. 
Byfield  Parish,  Mass.,  23,  225,    275,    291-301, 

305.   310.   31S,   323.   324.   327-."9,   331.  432> 

50S,  527,  616. 
Byles,  416. 

pABOT,  577,  578. 
V-/     Cadiz,  Spain,  462. 
Caldera,  Chili,  654. 
Caldwell,  299,  538,  704,  710. 

Rev.  Samuel  L.,  704. 
Calef,  125,  159. 
Calfe,  162. 
California,  351. 
Callao,  Peru,  654. 
Callender,  319. 
Calvin,  525. 
Cambridge,  England,  638. 

Massachusetts,    38,    247,  -311,  331,  406,   452, 

542>  55".  553>  557,  641,  &<3i- 
Campbell,  417,  704. 

Rev.  Randolph,  704. 
Campton,  N.  H.,  643. 
Canada,  1S5,  237,  469,  4S7,  494-496,  640. 
Canada  Expedition,  1S5,  494-497. 
Caner,  402. 

Canso,  N.  S.,  46S,  469,  497. 
Canterbury,  England,  47,  48,  687,  705. 
Canton,  Mass.,  312. 
Cape  Ann,  346,  487,  497. 
Cape  Breton,  308,  485. 
Cape  Horn,  652. 
Carleton,  279,  344,  711. 
Carpenter,  561. 
Carr,    50,    55-79,    100,   loS,   109,   161,   169,   185, 

20S,  221,  241,  243,  266,  267,  278,  279,  283, 

39°-   393-395,   475,   496,   520,   543,   593,  6^3, 

710. 
George,  55-64,  161,  169,  27S. 
Richard,  278,  279. 
Carr's  Island,  55,  56,  58-72,  75,  76,  78,  79,  278, 

279. 
Carr's  Ferry,  55-70,  73,  74,  79,  94,  108,  185. 
Carriage  Builders,  673. 
Carter,  86,  134,  442,  445,  520,  548,  594,  599,  654, 

664,  711,  712. 
Carthagena,  Colombia,  652. 
Cartwright,  100. 
Cary,  439,  440,  445,  454,  455,  557,  575,  594,  599, 

676. 
Rev.  Thomas,  439,  440,  445. 
Casco  Bay,  1S5. 
Casco  Fort,  1S5. 
Casey,  659. 
Casualties,  194. 
Caswell,  495. 
Cemeteries,   269,   296,   36S,    387-39^5-    433,    435- 

453-463,  605-609.     See  BuRviNc,  Ckounds. 
Cemetery,  Belleville,  368,  387-390. 
Cemetery,  Byfield  Parish,  296. 
Centenarians,  457. 
Chace,  393. 

Chagres,  Colombia,  652. 
Champney,  449,  450. 
Chandler,  119,  120,  123-125,  132,  133,  139,   149, 

150,  162,  175,  181,  255,   280,  339,  341,  431, 

527,  529,  620,  629. 
Chandler's  Lane,  139. 
Chandlour,  233. 
Chaplin,  311. 
Charles  II.,  100,  263. 
Charleston,  S.  C,  597,  668. 


Charlestown,  Mass.,  250,  439,  542,  571,  575, 
677,  680,  693,  695. 

Chase,  22,  123,  149,  172,  181,  194,  311,387,  393, 
495,  496. 
Aquilla,  123. 

Chastellux,  503,  579,  582,  583. 
Marquis  de,  503,  579,  581,  582. 

Chauncy,  324,  416. 

Checkley,  322. 

Cheever,  675,  676. 

Chelsea,  Mass.,  704. 

Cheney,  14,  20,  104,  172,  1S3,  301,  303,  393,  495, 
51 '•  543-. 

Cheney's  Mills,  301,  303. 

Cherbourg,  France,  698. 

Chester,  N.  H.,  559,  572,  672. 
Pennsylvania,  676. 

Cheyney,  449. 

Chickering,  134,  135. 

Child,  695. 

Chili,  653,  654. 

China,  591,  667. 

China  Sea,  351. 

Chizamore,  543. 

Choat,  431,  543. 

Choate,  241,  242,  244. 

Chocolate  Mill,  192. 

Choulderton,  England,  165. 

Church  of  England,  9,  100,  loi. 

Church  Troubles,  236. 

Church,  St.  Paul's,  396. 

Churchill,  89. 

Chute,  303,  496. 

City  Wharf,  156. 

Civil  War,  1861-1865,  668,  679,  680,  697. 

Claggett,  410. 

Clams,  219. 

Clark,  21,  70,  74,  91,  108,  119,  123,  157,  1S8, 
192,  196,  251,  291,  365,  417,  501,  505,  576, 
628,  645,  665. 

Clarke,  157,  186,  277,  348,  364,  495,  497. 

Cleaveland,  325. 

Clement,  281,  661. 

Clements,  119,  122,  146,  147,  154,  628,  629. 

Clerks,  Town,  15,  43,  103. 

Clifford,  218. 

Clocks,  Church,  433,  442. 

Clouston,  45S. 

Cluff,  495. 

Coats,  487,  488,  588,  709-711. 

Coburn,  559. 

Codman,  655. 

Coffin,  22,  32,  45,  47,  50,  57,  58,  77,  79,  90,  93, 
99-102,    109,    112,    113,    1 18-120,   123,   138, 
140,  147,  148,   150,    156,   158,   168-177,   1^5, 
187-189,  191,  194,   217,   223,   239,  249,   250, 
269,  271,  275,  277,  281,  2S3,   290,  291,   295, 
298,  303,  319,  339,   341,   349,    375,   39^,    393, 
410,  411,  422,  430,   450,   455,   471,   495,   497, 
500,  510,  516,  520,   550,    594,   599,   608,   611, 
627-629,  661,  675,  677,  6S7,  709-711. 
Col.  Joseph,  171. 
Joshua,  171-173. 
Nathaniel,  170,  171. 
Tristram,  169,  170. 

Coffin  House,  168-174. 

Coffin's  Ferry,  169. 

Cohasset,  Mass.,  201. 

Coker,  72,  75,  118,  119,  132,  133,  135,  145,  150, 
236,  280,  394. 

Colby,  281,  48S,  495. 

Colchester,  Alass.,  55. 

Cole,  507,  511. 

Coleby,  496,  499. 

Coleman,  12,  14,  30,  34,  195,  616. 

Collins,  222,  613. 

Colman,  173,  192,  298,  563. 
Deacon  Benjamin,  298. 

Columbia,  Territory  of,  603. 

Combes,  510. 

Combs,  594. 

Commerce,  22,  162,  163,  555,  558,  653,  654. 


7i8 


IXDEX 


(■imiiiuiii  Lands,  14,  22,  118,  i  i<j,  127,  12S. 

Compton,  250. 

Conant,  U\h. 

Concord,  N.  H..  273,  506. 

fonflagrations.     See  Fires. 

Congressmen,  667,  697,  698. 

Connecticut,  17S,  410,  559,  576. 

Connor,  710. 

Contoocook,  N.  H.,  311. 

Conventions,  332,  333. 

Converse,  43. 

Con\eyance  by  Ttirf  and  Twig,  32. 

Conway,  (^'73. 

Cook,  77,  223,  2<So,  462. 

Coolidge,  614,  (195,  711. 

Coombs,    ji7.    ii«,   j^4,  Xj^,  •^,  5^,  5)/;,  fj45' 

Cooper,  393,  416. 

Copiapo,  Chili,  654. 

Copley,  5f).S. 

Cordova,  Argentine  Republic,  655. 

Corinth,  Vt.,  360. 

Cork  Haven,  Ireland,  641. 

Corliss,  57(1,  577. 

"Cormorant,"  Brig,  643. 

Cotten,  434. 

Cottle,  240,  280,  397-400,  404.  465. 

Cotton,  28,  76,  108,  548,  665. 

Couch,  510,  661. 

Councillors,  171. 

Court  Houses,  198-200,  610,  C136. 

Court  House  on  Bartlet  Mall,  fiu). 

Coventry,  England,  247,  252. 

Coventry  County,  England,  103,251. 

Cowes,  V.ngland,  554. 

Cradock,  203. 

Craigie,  551. 

Cram,  144,  145- 

Crane-neck  Hill,  53. 

Creasey,  141. 

Cremwel,  20. 

Cresey,  510. 

Crime,  175. 

Crocker,  39S-400,  431,  611. 

Crockett,  360. 

Cromlan,  20. 

Cromlonie,  23,  129,  143. 

Cromlon,  143. 

Cromwell,  144,  145. 

Crops.  22. 

Cross,  2S0,  331,  493.  494,   510,   517,    51S.    52(1, 

532,  594,  605,  612. 
Ralph,  280. 
Cross  Street,  139. 
Crown  Point,  N.  Y.,  43S,  471. 
Cummings,  398-400. 
Currier,  i,  2,  77,  83,  135,  138,  163,  240,  241,  243, 

244,  281-284,  390,  395,  465,  495,  497.  54.S- 
John,  jr.,  281-284. 
Curson,  273. 
Cur.son  Mill,  268,  269. 
Curzon,  273,  357,  367,  391. 
Cushing,   195,  225,  250,  253,  2S3,  422,  432,  440, 

5.^.3i   537>  S5>*.  6o6>  ''09>  624,  655,  662-671. 

684,  697. 
Hon.  Caleb,  440,  606,  664-671. 
Custom  House,  161. 
Cutler,  402,  407,  410,  550,  599. 
Cutter,  469,  594. 
Cutting,  22,  91,  93. 

pv.AI.lIi.ARI),  437. 

L'  Dalton,  162,  331,  333,  341-.U.S.  397-4<'<>, 
404,  407-409,  419,  468,  474-4S2,  548,  556, 
594,  629,  633,  637,  639,  698. 

Michael,  475-477. 

Hon.  Tristram,  34'-343.  477-4'\3- 
I  lalton  House,  474-477,  481. 
Damaris  Cove,  Me.,  185. 
Dannell,  1. 
Dana,  195,  337,  417,  523,  648,  649,  703. 

Rev.  Daniel,  703. 


1  )ane,  28,  619. 
Danford,  497. 
I  )anforth,  116, 

Darners.   Mass..  77,  193,  640,  677. 
Dartmouth,  485. 
Dartmouth  College,  172,  703. 
Daupliin,  St.  Dominique,  462. 
Davenport,  72,  73,  156,  240,  257,  417,  441,  492- 
501.    5«3.   .';o4.   5o&>   507.   .S49-  550.  5S1,  586, 
5S8,  607,  709-711. 
William,  492-498,  501,  507. 
Davenport's  Inn,  492,  493,  49S,  490,  502-504, 

507,  586-588. 
Daxice,  iSi. 
Davidson,  203,  265. 
Da\is,    297,   360,   376,   384,   393.   39(,.   400.  419, 

488,  496,  640,  643,  651,  711. 
Davison,   119,   123,   147.   148.  157-151^,  185.  250, 

422,  628,  629. 
Dean.  3,  230,  520. 
1  )eacons,  170. 
Deaths,  First,  23. 
Deblois.  482. 

Dedham,  Mass.,  15,  475,  699. 
Deeds   51,  233,  262,  347,  370. 
Deer  Island,  55,  63,  221,  227.  593-.Sq5.  5<>7- 
DeFord,  134. 

Demerara,  IJritish  Guiana,  641. 
T)i;nis()n,  263. 
I  it\  Lnjiort,  4S7,  494. 
I  ic\  il's  Den,  420-423. 

De.xter,   456,   458,   547,   549,  559,   564,  565,  570- 
577-  594.  599.  623,  711,  712. 
Timothy,  456,  559,  570-573,  575,  576,  623. 
Dexter  House,  564-576. 
Diary  of  Nathaniel  Knapp.  485-487. 
Dickerson,  599. 
Dijon,  437. 

Dimmick,  417,  684,  703. 
Rev.  Luther  F.,  703. 
Distilleries,  177,  476. 
Division  of  Lands,  21. 
Dixon,  494. 
Doane,  561. 
Docks,  151,  162. 

Dodge,  49,  77,  223,  351,  353,  387.  614,  645. 
Dole,    14,    16-20,   24,   83,   86,   119,   121-123,  •44> 
145,    153-155.    157.    15^.    170.    i«i,  225,   240, 
263   315-   337.   34S,   393.   394.   492.  SO*^.  53''. 
547.  710- 
Dr.  John,  121,   144. 
"  Dolphin,"  Urig,  640. 
Donahue,  360. 
Donaldson.  711. 
Dorchester,   Mass.,  51,   116,   117.  259.  403,  492, 

493.  639.  704- 
I  )orr.  4<). 

Dover,  X.  H.,  61. 
Dow,  55,  235,  496,  665,  667. 
I  )o\vneinge,  85. 
Downer,  311,  348,  392,  395. 
Downor,  393. 
Drake,  327,  493,  505,  583. 
Drayton,  597,  598. 
Dresser  in  Coffin  House,  174. 
I  )n)wn,  418,  673. 
I  irowning.  Deaths  by,  77,  203. 
Dudley,  45,  72,  73.  103.  319,  321,  323.  373,  374. 
I  )umas,  462. 

Dumer,  251,  257,  313,  315,  317. 
I  )umm<;r,  9,  12,  14,  20,  21,  23,  28-30,  35.  43,  86, 
105,   107,    112,  211,  247-250,  252,  275,291, 
293,    29S-300,  305,  313,  315-324.  32S,  402, 
43'-  594- 
Ridiard,  313,  315,  316. 

Lieutenant-Cioxernor  William,  21)8,  317-324. 
Dunimer  Academy,  298,  313-319.  322-325. 
Dunnner  Mansion,  318. 
Dunning.  89. 
Dunstable,  X.  H..  ;-.). 
Dunton,  187. 
Durant,  299. 


INDEX 


719 


Durant,  Rev.  Henry,  299. 
Durfee,  523. 
Dutch,  172. 

EAca.E  ISLAND,  55,  f.3,  221,  595. 
F.arle,  257,  4gS. 
Kartliquakes,  4S. 
Easiiian,  222. 
Eastburn,  41S. 

East  Haverhill,  Mass.,  172,  4'ii. 
East  India,  662. 

Easton.  14,  17,  28,  291,  313,  317. 
East  Sutton,  Mass.,  49. 
Eaton,  484. 
Eayr,  376. 
Eayre,  384. 

Ecclesiastical  Controversy,  88,  100,  loi. 
Edes,  471. 
Edwards,  6Sg,  709. 
Eldredge,  6gi. 
Eliot,  599,  676. 
"  Elizabeth,"  Ship,'  32. 
Ellis,  2. 

Elm  of  Newbun,',  Old,  424-429. 
El  well,  641. 
Embargo,  163. 
Emerson,  105-107,  393,  594. 

Emery,  14,  16,  20,  24,  34,  53,  90-92,  95,  97,  141, 
143,  236,  237,   269-273,   309,   328,   348,   357, 
359.  367,  378,  381.  393.  675.  687,  691. 
John,  269-272. 
Stephen,  272,  273. 
Emery  House,  270. 
Emery  Inn,  675. 
Emery's  Mills,  95,  271-273. 
Emigration,  170. 

Emmerie,  270.  ' 

Endicott,  10,  203,  291. 

England,  28,  29,  31,  32,  40,  43,  45,   47,  48,   76, 
87,  100,   103,   114,   115,   130,    165,   230,   247, 
248,  269,  270,  278,  291,  317,  322,  351,  372- 
374.    378,    379.   382,   383,   386,   401-403,   408, 
470,  496,  523,  527,    553,    639,   653,   655,   665, 
673- 
Engine  Houses,  622. 
Ensenada  Port,  S.  A.,  655. 
Epes.  431. 
Epitaphs,  113-115.  131.  237.  249,  250.  457-459, 

460-463,  548,  607-609. 
Epping,  N.  H.,  616,  703. 
"  Erie,"  Steamship,  281. 
Essex,  Mass.,  503. 
Essex  County,   Mass.,   171,    172,  332,  455,  480, 

542,  620. 
Essex-Merrimack  Bridge,  223,  245,  593-604. 
"  Essex  Result,"  332. 
Europe,  194,  345,  554,  654,  692. 
E\'ans,  599. 
Eveleth,  469. 
E.^eter,    N.    H.,    14S,   244.  251,  2H\  324,  325, 

.  521,  527.  529.  571- 
Exiles,  461,  462. 

Expeditions  to  Canada,  162,  640. 
Eyre,  373. 

CAIRBANKS,  312. 
1        Falmouth,  Me.,  185,  310,  331,  470. 
"  Fanny  Fern,"  691. 
Farley,  536. 
Farnam,  531. 

Farnham,  130-132,  345,  455,   531-533.   535.  ''"^i. 
709. 
Daniel,  130.  131,  455. 
Farris,  153,  410,  411,  584. 
Fatherland  Farm,  299,  326-330. 
Fa\-our,  499. 
Fay,  149. 

Fayette  County,  Pa.,  601,  603. 
Federal  Street  Church,  523. 
Feke,  319. 
Felt,  76. 


Felton,  672-680. 

Prof.  Cornelius  Conway,  672-676. 

Samuel  Morse,  677-680. 
F'erries,  55-70,  73-77,  79,  83,  94,   108,   161,   169, 

184,  185,  23S-246,  394,  530. 
Ferry  at  Bartlett's  Cove,  Proposed,  23S-243. 
Ferry  at  Holt's  Rocks,  395. 
Ferry  near  Powwow  River,  394. 
F'erry,  Carr's.     See  Carr's  Ferry. 
Fessenden,  267. 
Feveryear,  37. 
Fielding,  14. 

Fifty  Thousand  Pound  Loan,  433. 
Fillmore,  282. 
Finley,  601,  603. 

Fires,  36,  53,  79,  100,  153,  622,  646-650. 
Fire,  of  181 1,  Great,  153,  622,  646-650. 
First  Church,  170. 
First  Presbyterian  Church,  435. 
First    Presbyterian     Meeting-house,     508-520, 

561. 
First  Religious  Society  in  Newburyport,  443- 

447- 
First  Religious  Society's  Meetmg-house,  650. 
First  Parish  Burying  Ground,  110-115. 
First  Tavern,  108. 
Fish,  22,  175,  219. 
Fisher,  510. 
Fitch,  629. 

Fitchburg,  Mass.,  679. 
Fitts,  129,  146. 
F'itz,  452. 
P'lagg,  659. 
Flatbush  Pass,  543. 
F'letcher,  469,  710. 
Flood.  37,  393,  543. 
"  Florida,"  Schooner,  705. 
Folinsbee,  711. 
Follansbee,  357. 
Follansby,  34S. 
F'oUensby,  223. 
Follingsby,  147. 
FoUinsbee,  710. 
FoUinsby,  392,  393. 
Forbes,  328,  329,  437,  527. 
Ford,  495. 
Forests,  346. 

Fort  on  Plum  Island,  213. 
Fort  Washington,  N.  Y.,  641. 
Foster,  28,  561,  641. 

Daniel,  561. 
Four  Rock  Bridge,  104. 
Fowle,  506. 
Fowler,  18S,  198. 
Fox,  417,  447,  701. 
Foxcroft,  116,  307,  324,  432. 
France,  278,  470,  553,  555,  582,  583. 
Francis,  504. 

Franklin,  14,  18,  27,  437,  438,  493,  526,  554,  573, 
691. 

Benjamin,  437. 
F'ranklin  County,  Mass.,  616. 
Frazier,  439. 
Free  Masons,  624,  625. 
"  Free  Press,"  The,  684. 
Freehold  Lots,  348. 
Freeman,  170. 
French,  77,  359. 

French  and  Indian  Wars,  83,  185. 
FVench  War,  438,  470,  471. 
Friend,  58S. 
"  Friends,"  Ship,  38. 

Frog  Pond,  92,  118,  120,  125.  127,  139,  143. 
Frost,  36. 
Frothingham,  410,  465,  473,  511,  571,  572,  594, 

613,  623,  625,  647,  650,  710. 
Fruit  Trees,  560. 
Fulham,  England,  403. 
Fuller,  121,  122,  659. 
Funerals,  115-117,  250. 


720 


INDEX 


GABIROOSE,  C.  B.,  486. 
(iage,  217,  467. 
('■ale.  710,  712. 
(iallislian,  410,  496. 
(lalveston,  Tex.,  227. 
(lanibrell,  672. 
(".ardner,  29,  550,  565. 
(lardoqui.  S53- 
(larrison,  529,  636.  (>.Si-685.' 

William  Lloyd,  6Si-(>.S(>. 
Geneseo.  N.  V.,  676. 
C.eneva.  .Switzerland,  667. 
tJeorge,  495,  49(1. 
George  III..  499. 
Georgetown,  1>.  C,  353,  481,  505. 

Massachusetts,  296,  345,  677. 
(".erish.  347,  434. 

Gerrish,  94, '05,  103,  104,  107,  141,  143,  194,  204, 
258,  266,  2.S0,  281,  348,  406,  441,  446,  485, 
493,  494,  497,  516,  532,  533,  542,  594,  710, 
711. 
Gerrishes,  4S6. 
(ierrv,  409. 
Getcliell,  54,  222. 
Gibbs,  257,  404. 
( liddings,  61(1. 
Gilbert,  259. 
Gilchrist,  402. 
Gile,  64S. 

Giles,  446.  S75.  60S,  649. 
Gill,  471. 

Gillingham,  Kngland,  43. 
Gilman,  646. 
Gilmanton,  N.  H.,  505. 
Gloucester.  Kngland,  526. 

Massachusetts,  102,  2117.  ,^27.  329.  640.  641, 
643,  651. 
Glover,  408,  583. 
Glovers,  87. 
Goddard,  661. 
Godffree,  iSi. 
Godfrey,  22,  129. 
Goldsmith,  407. 
Gomez.  654. 
Goodale,  263. 
Goodell,  3,  66. 
Gooden,  510. 
(joodhue,  511- 
Goodrich,  317,  350,  709. 
Goodridge,  228,  252,  543. 

Klijah  P.,  Assault  of,  228. 
Goodwin,  394,  512,  712. 
(iookin,  548,  557. 
Gordon,  568. 
Gorges,  639. 
Gorham,  327,  578,  712. 
fJorham,  Me.,  310. 
Gould,  426,  462,  55S,  609,  659-662. 

Henjamin,  659,  661. 

Itenjamin  Apthorp,  661. 

Hannah  Klagg,  659-663. 

Zaccheus,  659. 
Gourdin,  393. 
Gove,  475. 
Grain,  81;. 
tJranger,  305,  446. 
Grant,  668. 

Grants,  17,  22,  27,  50,  55,  57,  62,  63,  92-94,  loi, 
104,  120,  125,  127,  128,  139,  143-145,  150, 
'5'>   '57i   '58,   166,   177,   184,  270-272,  287, 

Gravesend,  Kngland,  665. 

(Jravcstone  Inscriptions.     See  In.scrh'Tions. 

Gray,  421,  710,  711. 

Great  Hoar's  Head,  589. 

( Ireat  Itritain,  159,  371,  377,  407,  589,  675. 

Great  River,  14,  25,"  81,  ,%,  ,S8. 

(ireat  Join,  liidinn,  347. 

( Ireece,  676. 

I  Ireelcy,  76,  77,  68ij. 

Green  .Street,  121. 

(Jrcentield,  Mass.,  616. 


Greenland.  142. 
Dr.  Henry.  142. 

Greenland,  X.  H.,  5S1. 

Greenleaf,  14,  16,  24,  93,  108,  109,  118,  119, 
121-123,  125,  139,  I4I-I45'  150-  15'.  '55- 
159,  161,  162,  167,  170,  176,  177,  200,  217, 
289,  290,  308,  331-333.  335.  336.  348,  393. 
397,  432,  440,  442,  449-451,  455,  465,  476, 
492,  500,  510,  516,  51S,  532,  533,  547,  551, 
559.  572.  577.  593.  610,  612,  613,  622,  623, 
627,  629,  635,  643,  645,  693,  709,  711,  712. 
Hon.  Henjamin,  455. 

Greenleaf  s  Lane,  119,  122. 

Greenleaf  s  Wharf,  156. 

Greenleafe,  277,  289,  393. 

(Ireenlef,  267,  434. 

( Ireenliefe,  233. 

Greenlife,  431. 

Greenough,  83. 

( Ireenwood,  701. 

Grenlef,  181. 

Grenlefe,  181. 

Griffin,  393,  495. 

(Jriswold,  417,  512. 

CSrovelind.  Mass.,  348. 

Guadaloupe.  461,  641,  643. 

Guayaquil,  Colombia,  652. 

Guiseley,  Kngland,  305. 

Gunner's  Point,  595. 

Gunnison,  635. 

Gwin,  399. 

Gwyn,  487. 

Gwynn,  397,  399-401.  404,  419,  441. 

HACKETT,  .93- 
Haddam,  Conn..  132. 
Hale,   14,  47,  48,  S3-S9,  97,  105,  106,  119,  135, 

137.   149.   150.   iSi,  273,  293,  294,  297,  315, 

336,  337.  367,  3^7.   390.   393,   432,   433,  476, 

504,  505,  510,   511,   536,   542,   563,   5S8,  628, 

637,  641,  675,  687,  710. 
Rev.  Moses,  297. 
Thomas,  14,  S4-8S. 
Hale  House,  Newburv  Keck,  S4,  S7-89. 
Halifax,  N.  S.,  485. 
Hall,  225,  431,  512,  632,  633. 
Halls,  624,  625. 
Hamilton,  565. 
Hammond,  676. 
Hampslead,  N.  H.,  194. 
Hampton,   N.   H.,  22,  60,  63,  76,  98,  123,  144, 

145,  172.  18S,  253,  475,  526,  548,  616,  639. 
Hampton  Falls,  N.  H.,  450. 
Hancock,  333,  335,  336. 
Hanging  Sleeves,  255. 
Hanover,  N.  H.,  703. 
Hants  County,  England,  231. 
Harbut.  510,  613. 
Harbutt,  3S4. 

Harlem  Heights,  N.  V.,  543,  641. 
Harper,  41. 
Harris,   116,   193,  374,  37S,  379,  397-400,    404, 

510,  511,  684. 
Harrisburg,  Tex.,  227. 
Harrison,  497,  597. 
Harrod,  159,  161,  645,  710. 
Hart,  484. 

Hartford,  Conn.,  255. 
Harvard  College,  171. 
Haskell,  124-126,  489,  497,608,  664. 
Haven,  529. 
Haverhill,    Mass.,    86,   87,    132,    169,    194,  218, 

237.  278,  392,  475,  482,  633,  709-712. 
Havre,  France,  555. 
Hay  .Scales,  614. 
Haynes,  141. 
Hays,  599,  710. 
Hayti,  31. 
Healey,  178,  491. 
Healy!  76,  594. 
Heard.  264. 
Hendricks,  147,  62S. 


IXDEX 


721 


Herbert,  456. 

Charles,  456. 
Herv'ey,  161. 
Hewes,  222,  376. 
He  wins,  699. 
Hibbins,  51. 
Hidden,  510,  512. 
Higginson.  447,  450,  451,  455,  566,  577,  57S. 

Rev.  Thomas  W. ,  447. 
High  School,  617. 
High  Street,  14,  50,  139. 
Hill,  393. 

Hill  Street,  118,  127. 
Hills,  105,  iig,  141,  179,  263,  496. 
Hilton,  277,  495. 
Hinckley,  76. 

Hingham,  Mass.,  28,  440,  665,  703. 
Hinkley,  711. 

Historical  Society  of  Old  Newbury,  563. 
"  History  of  Newbury,"  172. 
Hoboken,  N.  Y.,  691. 
Hodge,  214,.  215,  281,  446,  570,  5S6-5SS. 
Hodges,  122,  689. 
Hog,  393- 
Holeman,  393. 
Holland,  165. 
Hollawaj',  485. 
Holman,  392. 
Holmes,  641. 

Holt,  14,  16,  23,  241,  269,  391,  395. 
Homer,  487. 

Hong  Kong,  China,  351. 
Hook,  395,  593. 
Hooker,  43. 
Hooper,  153,  162,  273.  344,   41c,  439,  479,  482, 

594,  608,  610,  612,  613,  621,  633,  711,  712. 
Hopkinton,  Mass.,  401. 
Hopson,  487. 
Home,  325. 
Horses,  99. 

Horsforth,  England,  305,  307. 
Horton,  195,  418,  594,  599,  635. 

Rev.  William,  418. 
Hotel,  Plum  Island,  217,  575. 
Houchin,  639,  640. 

Houses,  124-126,  136,  164-174,  189-197,  260, 
261,  265,  267,  305,  306,  309-312,  334-337, 
354-361,  425,  44S-452,  47>-477.  4S4,  48S- 
491,  52S,  529,  540,  541,  544,  547,  549-5S5. 
627-631,  633,  642,  644,  651,  654,  657,  658, 
661,  664,  66s,  669,  670,  672-674,  67S,  6S1, 
68  2,   687,  688",  691,  693,  6^4. 

Moses  Brown's,  633. 

Coffin,  168-174. 

Caleb  Cushing's,  664,  665,  669,  670. 

Dalton,  474-477. 

Dexter,  564-576. 

Felton,  672-674,  678. 

Abijah  Garrison's,  681,  6S2. 

Gould,  661. 

Ilsley,  189-197. 

At  Indian  Hill,  354-356. 

Jaques,  435. 

Knapp,  484,  488-491. 

Colonel  Moses  Little's,  540,  541,  544. 

Longfellow,  305,  306,  309-312. 

Lowell,  44S-452. 

Lowell-Johnson,  577-5S5. 

March-Haskell,  124-126. 

William  Morse's,  627-630. 

Noyes,  164-167. 

Page,  136. 

Rev.  Jonathan  Parsons',  528,  529. 

Theophilus,  334-337. 

Parton,  6S7,  688,  691. 

Sawyer,  357-361. 

Stone's,  693,  694. 

Titcomb,  471-473. 

Toppan,  260,  261,  265,  267. 

Nathaniel   Tracy's,   547,   549,    551-563,    567, 
573,  650. 

Patrick  Tracy's,  547,  549,  550. 


Houses,  Weed,  136. 

-Abraham  Wheelwright's,  642,  644. 

Ebenezer  Wheelwright's,  651. 

William  Wheelwright's.  654. 
Hovey,  524,  649. 
Howard,  195,  616,  649,  664,  665,  710. 

Roger  S.,  616. 
Hoyt,  77,  230,  442,  445,  4S9,  535,  569,  577,  594, 

599,  605,  711. 
Hubbard,  250. 
Huce,  378. 

Hudson,  587-589,  646. 
Hull.  252,  258. 
Hume,  597. 
Humphrey,  10,  291. 
Hunt,   153,  247,  280,  495,  664,  709,  710. 
Huse,  142,  288,  373,  376,  37S,  393,  3q5,  396,  632, 

673- 
Hutchinson,  27,  88,  116,  252,  276,  291,  315,  317, 
405,  467,  638,  640. 

ILSLEV,    24,   51,  90,   loi,    176,   188-190,    194, 
196,  200,  503. 

Ilsley  House,  189-197. 

Incorporation  of  City  of  Newburyport,  668. 

Indians,  11,  16,  64,  185,  201,  212,  237,  286,  288- 
290,  347,  350- 

Indian  Attack  on  the  Family  of  John  Brown 
at  Turkey  Hill,  2S6,  290. 

Indian  Captives,  288. 

Indian  Deed,  347. 

Indian  Depredations,  286,  28S-290. 

Indian  Hill,  347. 

Indian  Hill  Farm,  350. 

Indian  Trails,  201. 

Indian  Wars,  185,  237. 

Ingalls,  203,  461,  594. 

Inquests,  81. 

Inscriptions,  24,  36,  249,  250,  297,  325,  389,  390, 
457-463,  607-609,  703. 

Inventory  of  Estate  of  Richard  Bartlett,  232. 

Ipswich,  England,  32. 
Massachusetts,  9,  10,  16,  20,  25,  28,  29,  35, 
.S5.  57,  59.  61,  70-74.  76.  104,  122,  146,  147, 
161,  176,  177,  180-183,  186,  187,  201,  208, 
212,  213,  232,  239-241,  247,  249-251,  253, 
254,  261,  263,  266,  270,  288,  289,  331,  378, 
494,  497.  503.  527.  530.  556,  632,  639-641, 
659,   665,   703. 

Ireland,  77,  79,  278. 

Isles  of  Shoals,  346. 

Isthmus  of  Panama,  652-654. 

lACKMAN,  236,  240,  281,  283,  387. 
J     Jackson,  159,  161,  331,  409,  410,  547,  549- 
551.  555.  556.  564-568,  570,  577,  691. 

Hon.  Jonathan,  555,  564-568,  570,  577. 
Jacobs,  159. 
Jails,  620,  649. 
Jamaica,  31. 

Jamaica  Plain,  Mass.,  686. 
James  III,,  365. 
■'  James,"  Ship,  11. 
Jameson,  711. 
Japan,  591. 
Jaques,   19,  35,  99,  119,  124,  192,  272,  366,  393, 

400,  425,  536,  541. 
Jaques  House,  425. 
Jaquis,  206,  207. 
Jefferson,  109,  553,  573,  691. 

Thomas,  553. 
Jefferson  Street,  79,  94. 
Jenkins,  398-400,  404,  407,  410,  419,  510. 
Jeoffreys,  29. 
Jewell,  258. 

Jewett,  518,  529,  561,  616. 

Johnson,  119,  124,  156,  162,  195,  280,  287,  337, 
393,  418,  433.  453.  465.  47'.  5",  577.  579, 
580,  584,  585,  588,  632,  693,  709-711.   :     - 

Eleazer,  584. 
Johnston,  506. 
Jonah,  174. 


72- 


IXDF.X 


Jones.  177,  470,  5.Sf>,  5SS,  599,  710. 
Jonson,  434. 
"  Joppa,"  21S,  219. 
Joshua.  471. 
Joy,  sw  7'o.  7'2- 
Judges,  171,  667-669. 
Juet,  379. 

KAHI.KR,  712. 
Kally,  181. 
Keazer,  510. 
Kelby,  393- 
Kelley.  395,  576. 
Kelly,  132,  393. 
Kelly  School,  132. 
Kemble,  276,  277. 
Kennebec  River,  97,  162. 
Kenney,  393,  543. 
Kent,  9,  14,  23,  24,  .S6,  S7,  93,  154-156,  166.  213. 

233,  251,  264,  265,  349,  357,  410.  411,  413. 

421,  423.  432-434.  45.S.  4*>4.  4<M-  5'o-  547- 
Colonel  Richard,  455. 
Kent's  Island,  14,  16. 
Kettell,  440,  442. 
Kettle.  646. 
Kew,  Kngland,  657. 
Kezer,  194. 
Kidwell,  29. 
Kilburn,  542. 
Kimball.  172,  594. 
King,    14.  333.  379.  40**- 
King  Philip's  War,  64. 
Kingsburv,  79. 
Kirby,  85,'  86. 
Kittery,  Me.,  36,  273,  527. 
Kittle  s  Rocks,  595. 
Knap,  487,  510. 
Knapp,  457,  484,  485,  488,  489,  4<)i.  494,  4<,5, 

57'.  575.  640.  f'84.  685. 
Isaac,  685. 

Nathaniel,  457,  484-491. 
Knapp  House,  484,  488-491. 
Knight,   14,  20,  21,  28,  34,  35,  45,  83,  91,  93,  94, 

108,   127,   137,   152,   181,   196,  200,  233,  287, 

339.  34'.  303.  .394.  425.  495.   5'o-5'2.   520. 

f'43- 
Knox,  641. 
Krell,  657,  658. 

I   \  K.AVETTK,  561,  643,  683. 

'-•     l,a  F'ayette's  Visit,  561. 

Laird,  447. 

Lake,  193. 

Lambton,  379-381. 

Lampton,  :?8o. 

Lancaster,  Mass.,  609,  659,  661,  662. 

Lander,  141. 

Landing  at  Parker  River,  9. 

Lane.  643. 

Lapham,  680. 

Large  .Men,  88. 

Latham,  616,  664. 

Laughton,  41 1,  579. 

Lawsuits,  161,  17S,  179. 

Lawrence,  344,  646,  648. 

Lawrence,  Alass.,  218. 

Lawson,  479. 

Lawyers,  667,  W)8,  6(;7,  69S,  704. 

Leach.  6X9,  fx)i. 

Leatherland,  407. 

Leavitt.  440. 

I.e  lireton,  134,  (kiA,  644,  711). 

Lee.  485,  551,  557,  55S,  565,  581,  661. 

Leeds,  Kngland,  305,  307. 

Letters,   85,    107,    171,   257,   293-295,  307,   30(,, 

3'".   323.   37'.   374.   375.  377.  379.  380,  384. 

401,  402,  407,  411,  413,  468,  469. 
Leverett,  116. 
Levy,  5of). 

Lewis,  250,  421,  613. 
Lexingt(m,  Mass.,  223,  489,  542,  65<;. 
Leyden,  Holland.  21,7. 


"  Liberator."  The,  6S5. 
Life-sa\ing  Station,  591 
Light-houses,  214,  591. 
Lightning,  350,  437. 
l,iniL--ki]n,  95. 
Limestone,  421. 
Lincoln,  s66,  679. 
Lippitt,  680. 
Liquors,  .Sale  of,  177 
Little,  4,  40,  181,  185 


iSo,  181. 
87,  195,21 


[,248, 


52, 
393. 
5'3. 
612, 


5'S, 
629, 


308, 
403. 
583. 


-453. 
558. 
622, 


287,  328,  336,  350,   36c,   367,   387, 

411,  434,  475,  477,   481,   505, 

527.  537.   539-544.   ^»5.   boT 

675,  710- 
Colonel  Moses,  540-544. 
Little  River,  16,  104. 
Littlehale,  339. 

Liverpool.  England,  641,  643. 
Lloyd,  343.,C>8i. 
London,    England,  28,  85,    187,   247,  253, 

371.   372,   374.   38'-383.   386,   397,   401, 

407,   408,   437,  445,   467,   504,  534,  56S, 

655.  657.  704- 
Londonderry,  N.  H.,  193. 
Long,  83,  105,  106,  179,  357,  378,  3S1,  384,  393, 

510,  594,  693. 
Long  Dutton,  England,  295. 
Long  Island,  N.  Y.,  543,  641. 
Longfellow,  S3,  305-312,  553. 
Henry  Wadsworth,  311,  553. 
William,  305-308. 
Longfellow  House,  305,  306,  309-312. 
Lord,   34,  35,    122,   225,  232,  263.  414,  468.  470, 

571,  649,  701. 
Loring,  579,  671,  695. 
Lotteries,  531-535- 
Louisburg,  C.  B.,  457,  465.  467,   468,   484,   4.>-:5, 

487,  491,  494,  495,  640. 
Lovering,  677. 
Low,  503. 
Lowden,  510. 
Lowell,    15,    17,  91.  93,   95,    119.   151.  152,  216, 

393.43'.   432,   436.    437.   439.    44'.    447 

455.  47".  471.   493.  49^.   526.   547-55'. 

564.   5f>5.   569.   577-580,   5S4,    5S5,  613, 

672. 
Rev.  John,  431,  439,  448-453,  470. 
Hon.  John,  564,  565,  577-579. 
Lowell  House,  448. 
Lowell- Johnson  House,  577-585. 
Lowell,  Mass.,  344,  479,  57.S. 
Lower  (Jreen,  13-17,  20,  23,  25,  86,  93,  104. 
Lowle,  181,  213,  432. 
Loyalists,  331. 
Lucas,  381,  382,  387. 

Rev.  Henry,  381,  382,  3S7. 
Lunt,  9,    14,  118,  119,   124,   125,   128,   129, 

135.  '38.  181,  1S7,  253,   263,  280,  281, 

381,384,393,441,489,  510,   511.   537,; 

543.  569.  f"''.  7"'.  7"4.  709- 
Hon.  Ceorge,  704. 
Captain  Mieajah,  569. 
Lur\ey.  488. 
Lyceum,  625,  649. 
Lyde,  116,  117,  295,  296. 
Lyme,  Conn.,  512. 

New  Hampshire,  616. 
Lynch,  579,  583. 

I\L,  579,  583. 
Lynde,  72,  73,  179,  257. 
Lynn,  Mass.,  203,  421,  681. 
Lyon,  176,  186,  i9r,  196. 

M.\CC.RKC(>KK,  712. 
M.ichias.  .Me.,  5S2. 
.Macintosh,  4. 
Mackmillion,  511. 
Madison,  40c). 
Madriil,  Spain,  669. 
M.iinc.  408,  542. 
M.ddcn.  Mass.,  571,  593. 
M.illord.  Kiiglaiul,  2S7,  632. 


INDEX 


723 


Malt-bouses,  149. 

Manila,  591. 

Manning,  561,  563. 

Manson,  282. 

Maps,  118,  119,  339,  341,  391,  392,  594,  595,  fiio, 

648. 
Marblehead,    Mass.,    153,   317,    3S2,    385,   414, 

479,  4S5,  551,  557,  673. 
"Marblehead,"  Gunboat,  281. 
Marbur\-,  638. 

March,  33,  64-66,  68,  69,  89,  90,  97,    loi,   109, 
119,  124-127,  148,   155,   157,   159,   161,   175- 
189,  192,  196,  198,  206,  207,  264,  27S,  279, 
393-395.  417.  422,  441,  593,  687. 
Hugh,  175-184- 
John,  181,  184,  185. 
March's  Ferry,  184,  1S5. 
March's  Tavern,  90,  175-184. 
Maine  Society,  Newburj-port,  586-592. 
Market  House,  622-625. 
Market  Square,    Nevvburyport,    121-123,    431, 

441,  445,  622-631. 
IMarket  Street,  141. 
Marlborough,  Mass.,  556. 
Marquand,  162,  397,  399,  400,  404,  406,  407,  446, 

60S,  643,  646,  710. 
Marsh,  131,  132,  439,  455,  465,  594,  599. 

Rev.  Christopher  B..  439,  455. 
Marshall,  iSi,  576. 
Marshes,  219. 
Marshfield,  Mass.,  309. 
Marster,  614. 
Marston,  620. 
Martain,  496. 
Martin,  543. 
Martinique,  641. 
Martissan,  467. 
Mary,  Qiteeti,  406. 
"  Mary  Alice,"  Ship,  163. 
"  Mary  and  John,"  Ship,  9,  25,  103,  230. 
Maryland,  353. 
Mason,  496. 

Massachussetts,    114,    216,    225,  285,  298,  313, 
3i7>   323>    325.    331-333,    337,   342,   343,  353, 
35^,  373,  374,   39^,   403,    405,   40S-411,    416, 
418,  456,  479,  480,   543,   556,   558,   565,   566, 
56S,  569,  578,  639,  641,  667,  668,  676,  679, 
701,  704. 
^Massachusetts  Bay  Colony,  9,  15,  638,  639. 
Matanzas,  Cuba,  579. 
Mather,  165,  288,  416,  63S. 
Matthews.  495,  497. 
Mavericke,  100. 
May,  447,  6gi. 

Rev.  Joseph,  447. 
Maynard,  695. 
Mayo,  iSi. 
McGregor,  599. 
McHard,  457. 

Mecklenburg,  tJermany.  657. 
Medford,  Mass.,  38,  40,  165,  201,  203. 
Meeting-houses,  97-100,  104,  293,  294,  296,  50S- 
520,  622.  635,  646,  647,  650. 
First,  Oldtown,  14,  16,   17,  263. 
Rev.  Daniel  Dana's,  649. 
First  Parish,  Newbury,  36,  93. 
F'irst  PresbWerian,  521,  649. 
Second  Presbyterian,  649. 
First  Religious  Societyin  Nevvburyport,  443, 

,444,  44''5,  447,  (""So- 
Third  Parish  in  Newbury.  430-442. 
Meinerth,  4. 
Melyen,  255. 
Mendon,  !ilass.,  49. 
Merchants,  162. 
Merlande,  462. 
Merriam,  132,  173. 

Merril,  374,  375,  378-380,  392,  393,  710. 
^lerrill,  4,  163,  195,  222,  240,  265,  281-2S3,  348, 
350,  367,  373,  376,  377,   381,   3S4,   393,   395, 
48S,  495,  543,  617,  635,  672,  717- 
Merrimac  House,  507. 


Merrimac  River,  9,    10,  21,   22,  27,  30,  3S-40, 
49,  50,  55,  57,  59,  ^4,  65,  67-69,   74,  91,   92, 
95,  97,  163,  184,  201,  340,  392,  595,  598. 
Merrimac  .Street,  14,  20,  27. 
Methuen,  ilass.,  283. 
Mexican  War,  668. 
Meyer,  134. 
INIichelson,  276. 
Mico,  116. 

Middle  Shipyard,  122,  2S0,  622. 
Middle  Street,  629. 
Mighill,  264,  520. 
Mile  .Stones,  209-211. 
Milford  Haven,  317. 
Military,  16,  27,  SS,  30.8,  455,  456. 
Millburv,  262. 
Miller,  (395. 
Milles,  406. 

Mills  (name),  137,  225,  649. 
Mills,  First,  20,  95,  104. 

Grist-mills,  20,  104,  26S-274,  301,  303. 
Milner,  711. 
Milton,  455. 

Rev.  Ciiarles  W.,  455. 
Milward,  22,  33,  35,  453. 
Minot,  537. 

Mirick,  4S5,  488,  489,  494. 
Miricke,  431. 
Mistick,  203. 
Mitchel,  511. 
Mitchell,  201,  308. 
Moggaridge,  2S1-2S3,  349. 
^lonk,  1S7. 
Monroe,  677. 
Montesquieu,  579,  5S1,  583. 

M.  de,  579,  581,  583. 
^Montgomery,  505,  506. 
Moodey,  251,  293,  297,  310,  378,  393. 
Moody,  14,  18,  50,  70,  74,  92,  118,  119,  123,  124, 
147-149,  155,   158,   169,   172,   181,  222,  223, 
235,  253,  262,  265,  282,  294,  296,  324,  325, 
328,  331,  336,  339,  344,  345,  348,  367,  381, 
394,  430,  434,  437,  441,  485,   488,   494,   495, 
510,  536,  612,  628,  629,  6S7,  693,  695. 

Samuel,  324,  325. 
Moody's  Lane,  92. 
^loor,  112,  200. 
Moore,  200,  416. 
Moors,  145,  146. 
Morehead,  518. 
Morehouse,  447. 

Rev.  Daniel  W.,  447. 
Moreland,  410,  419. 
Morey.  384. 
Morgan,  97. 
Morgaridge.  542. 
Morgridg,  469. 
Morland,  407. 
IMorrell,  712. 
Morrison,  393,  510. 
Mors,  627. 

r^Iorse,  14,  90,  98,  103,  11S-121,  139-143,  147, 
148,  171,  175,  179,  187-189,  191-193,  198, 
199,  233,  349,  370.  392,  393,  410,  4'9,  495, 
496,  510,  517,  627-630,  672,  673,  675,  677. 

F.lizabeth,  140. 

William,  120,  121,  140,  147,  627,  628. 
Morse  Houses,  120,  121,  140,  147,  148,  627-630. 
Morss,  416,  446. 

Rev.  James,  416,  417. 
Moseley,  355,  360,  414,  620,  624,  693. 
Closely,  4,  563. 
Moses,  322,  471. 
Moss,  181,  250. 
Mossom,  382. 
Motte,  28. 

Moulton,  50,  III,  243,  245,  393,  593. 
Mount  WoUaston,  638. 
Mulliken,  633. 
Murphy,  491. 
ilurray,  455,  457,  523,  561,  570. 

Rev.  John,  45s,  457. 


724 


INDEX 


MusgTo,  308. 

Mussilwait,  14. 

Muzzey,  90,  95,  icx),  j'>4,  447. 

Rev.  Artemus  1!.,  447- 
Muzzle,  265,  422. 
Mycall,  190,  561,  594. 
Myles,  116,  406. 

NADAU,  462. 
Nahant,  Mass.,  421. 

Nantasket,  Mass.,  496. 

Nantucket,  Mass.,  170,  494. 

\nthij>iae/,  250. 

Nelson,  134,  489,  i;73- 

New  Brunswick,  681. 

New  England,  9,  21,  22,  25,  28,  40,  45,  47,  85, 
103,  115,  170,  1S7,  193,  197,  201,  203,  204, 
230,  233,  247,  248,  250,  252,  253,  258,  27S, 
279.  .3o7>  323,  335.  355-357.  361,  371,  3S1, 
3S3,  401,  405,  406,  409,  464,  469,  475,  479, 
496,  498,  503,  526,  545,  553,  556,  557,  579, 
583,  591,  59S,  603,  638-640,  659. 

New  Hampshire,  113,  114,  161,  20S,  245,  342, 
346,  409,  49S,  542,  554,  556. 

New  Haven,  Conn.,  576. 

New  Hill  Burying  Ground,  605-609. 

New  Jersey,  33,  417,  543. 

New  Lights,  508. 

New  Market,  N.  H.,  360,  496. 

New  Orleans,  La.,  691. 

New  Pond,  90-92,  96,  103. 

New  Town,  92,  97,  104. 

New  York,  296,  333,  40S,  409,  416,  480,  482. 

New  York,  N.  Y.,  300,  335,  337,  343,  345,  351, 
353.  504.  526,  543.  553.  582.  621,  641,  652, 
659,  671,  686,  6S9,  691,  697,  702. 

Newljurgh,  N.  Y.,  687. 

Newbury,  Mass.,  9-15,  17,  20-22,  24,  25,  27-33, 

35.  37.  43-45.  47,  49-5'.  57-74,  7(',  79,  «', 
86-88,  91,  95,  97,  98,  100-108,  110-114,  119- 
123,  125,  127-129,  135,  137,  139,  140,  142- 
>53,  «55,  '59.  if".  165.  if'7.  ilig,  170.  172, 
173,  i75-'87.  "89,  191-194,  198-201,  203- 
208,  211-213,  218,  221-223,  230-233,  236- 
241,  243-245,  247-253,  255,  261-267,  269- 
273,  275-27S,  280,  281,  283,  287-291,  293, 
294,  296,  297,  299-301,  303,  305,  307-311, 
313.  315-319.  324.  327-329,  333.  339.  34>- 
343.    345.   347-350.   357.   359-361,   363.   364, 

366,  368-370,  372-385,  389-392,  394-397. 
401-403,  406,  411,  419,  421-426,  429-434, 
436,  437,  439.  441,  442,  447,  449,  45°,  453. 
455,  459,  464,  4f'5,  468-47'.  475-477,  479. 
484,  485,  487,  488,  492-498,  500,  501,  503, 
504,  508,  509,  511-518,  526,  527,  529-533, 
536-539,  54",  542-544.  545,  54S,  551,  555- 
55S,  563-565,  567,  579,  589,  593-595.  597- 
601,  603,604,  611-613,  616,  617,  619,  620, 
622,  623,  625,  628,  631,  632,  63S,  639,  643, 
649,  664,  665,  671-673,  675,  677,  687,  704, 
709-712. 

Newbury  Kails,  20,  305. 

Newbury  Neck,  81,  84,  S6-89. 

Newbury  River,  19,  87. 

Newburyport,  Mass.,  13,  75,  89,  97,  125,  130, 
132,  159-161,  163,  188,  192-196,  213,  214, 
216,  223,  225,  227,  228,  237,  239,  243,  245, 
255,  273,  278,  2S1,  282,  2.S5,  299,  329,  331, 
333,    336,   337,   34',  343-345,   35',   355-357, 

367,  39',  405,  4"6,  410,  411,  413,  414,  416- 
419,  43r),  431,  440-444,  446,  447,  450,  451, 
455-457,  46'-463,  46S,  470,  471,  477,  479- 
482,  4S4,  489,  490,  493,  499-501,  503,  504, 
5'5-5'7,  520,  521,  523,  527,  529.  547,  549- 
55',  553,  555-5.57,  559-56',  563-566,  56S- 
573.  575-579,  581-589.  59",  593-595-  597, 
598,  (yai,  (.03-605,  607-fxxj,  61  i-'ii7,  619-625, 
627,  632,  633,  635-637,  640,  643-646,  649-652, 
654,  655,  657,  658,  0'6i,  662,  664,  665,  667- 
6(xj,  671,  673,  681,  683-687,  691-693,  695, 
fK,7.  701-705,  709-712. 

Newburyport  .Marine  .Society,  83. 


Newell,  524. 

Newfoundland,  640. 

Newhall,  586,  588. 

Newman,  441,  459,  476,  493,  584,  588. 

Newport,  Kngland,  491. 
Rhode  Island,  31,  319. 

Newton,  Mr.,  116. 

Newton,  Mass.,  564,  704. 

Nichols,  100,  5S8. 

Nicholson,  379-3S1. 

Noise,  393. 

Nolton,  238,  672. 

Norard,  487.  .     .^  .,/     - 

North,  50.  ci„-L-vf,eE<^l)iS  Wc'-  ■• 

North  Andover,  Mass.,  676,  695. 

Northen,  88. 

Northend,  250,  251,  325. 

Norton,  77,  222,  489,  510,  520. 

Nowell,  193,  410,  489,  510,  5S8,  710. 
Capt.  Moses,  489. 

Noyes,  9,  10,  14,  25,  27,  70-72,  74,  90,  91,  94, 
95,  99,  loi,  104,  106,  112,  114,  115,  118,  119, 
133,  134,  148,  149,  '52,  164-167,  175,  181, 
185,  188,  191,  192,  213,  249-251,  255,  265, 
281,  313,  341,  34S,  350,  374,  393,  422,  432, 
44'.  459.  460,  5'o-5'2,  5'8,  538,  545,  58S, 
625,  628,  629,  643,  654,  709,  710. 
Rev.  James,  9,  14,  25,  164-167. 

Noyes  House,  101,  164-167. 

Noyse,  393. 

OAK  HILL  CEMETERY,   12S,  700-705. 
Oatland's  Park,  England,  658. 
Obituaries,  597. 
O'Brien,  137,  138,  599,  709. 
Old  Hill  Burying  Ground,  435,  453-463. 
Old  South  Church,  Cenotaph  in,  521. 
Oldtown  Cemetery,  36. 
"Ontario,"  Steamship,  281. 
Ordinaries,  21,  161. 

First,  21. 
Ordway,  77,    112,   119-121,    139-142,    147,    162, 
365,  375,  378,   393,   397,  434,  S'o,    543,   627, 
628. 

James,  397. 
Ordway's  Lane,  139,  140,  142. 
Organs,  Church,  404,  405,  414,  440,  442. 
Orne,  161. 

O.sgood,  4,  319,  497,  649. 
OsUaway,  376. 
Otis,  156,  410,  411,  414. 
( )wens,  496. 
( )xford,  England,  165. 
Oyster  Bay,  L.  I.,  319. 

PACIFIC   STEAM    NAVIGATION   CO., 
653. 
Packer,  410. 

Page,  136,  13S,  238,  239,  241,  243,  458,  616,  649, 
70.3. 
David  Perkins,  616,  703. 
Page  House,  136. 
Pain,  1 16. 
Paine,  316,  333. 

Robert  Treat,  333. 
Palmer,  116,  457,  475,  595-597,  604. 

Timothy,  457,  595-597. 
Pans,  Prance,  353,  437,  583. 
Parishes,  291-296. 

Parker,  9,  10,  14,  16,  25,  27,  30,  33,  87,  88,  gi, 

100,  103,   1 10,   112,   165-167,   193,  212,  213, 

230,  236,  249,  252,  416,  632. 

Rev.  Thomas,  9,  10,  14,  16,  25,  33,   100,   103, 

164-167. 

Parker  River,  9,  10,    14,   16-1S,  20,  23,  25,  81, 

83,  91,  201. 
Parker  Rner  Bridge,  530-539. 
Parker  River  Falls,  293. 
Parker  River  Ferry,  530,  531. 
Parkman,  467. 

Parsonage,  Byfield,  292,  294,  299,  300,  334-337- 
Parsons,  188,  192.  196,  199,  200,  244,  275,  297- 


INDEX 


725 


Parsons  {conihi7ied). 

299.    316,   324>   327-329.   331-337,   435,   437, 
440,  442,  457,  4S1,   5oq,   510,    512,    513,    515, 
517,  518,  520,  521,    523,    527,    529,    549,    556, 
570,  588,  589,  599,  698. 
Eben,  327-329. 
Gorham,  329. 

Rev.  Jonathan,  512-521,  528. 
Rev.  Moses,  297,  327,  331. 
Hon.  Theophilus,  331-338,  440,  457. 

Parton,  553,  687-692,  705. 
James,  687-692,  705. 

Partridge,  113,  114,  122. 
William,  113,  114. 

Patch,  244. 

Patridge,  2S1. 

Payson,  251,  645. 

Peabody,  225,  336,  495,  504,  510,  661. 

Peabody,  Mass.,  329. 

Pearce,  204-206,  628. 

Pearson,  137,  191,  205,  228,  258,  301-303,  441, 
493,  495,  542,594,  599,  ^"32,  ^43,  &6i- 

Pearson,  Benjamin,  Homestead  of,  301-303. 

Pearson  Hotel,  228. 

Peaslee,  392. 

Peck,  273.  359. 

Prof.  William  Dandridge,  273. 

Peekskill,  N.  Y.,  543. 

Peirce,  143,  206,  207,  250,  251,  510,  511,  513, 
514,  710,  711. 

Peirson,  476. 

Pejepscot,  Me.,  544. 

Pemaquid,  Me.,  177. 

Pemberton,  30,  51,  129,  248. 

Pembroke,  ^lass.,  2S1. 

Pemmaquid,  Me.,  69. 

Pendergast,  360. 

Pengrj-,  147. 

Pennsylvania,  409,  410,  680. 

Penobscot  River,  569. 

Pepperell,  465,  468. 

Perigord,  582,  5S3. 

Perkins,  98,  193,  20c,  280,  445,  489,  503,  504, 
539,  643,  667,  676,  709. 

Perley,  3,  119,  120. 

Peme,  43. 

Perrin,  695,  699. 

Peru,  653. 

Peters,  410. 

Petitions,  181,  182,  221,  372,  373,  376. 

Pettengell,  35,  37,  40,  97. 

Pettengill,  543. 

Pettingal,  223,  410,  709,  711. 

Pettingall,  303. 

Pettingel,  608,  710. 

Pettingell,  34S,  512,  516,  520,  599,  712. 

Pettingill,  495. 

Pettingle,  510,  511. 

Philadelphia,  Pa.,  329,  342,  343,  353,  409,  437, 
4S0,  522,  526,  554,  582,  583,  679,  680,  689. 

Philadelphia  &  Reading  Coal  and  Iron  Com- 
pany, 156. 

Phillips,  416. 

Philp,  310. 

Phips,  308,  431. 

Pierce,  25,  26,  29-39,  86,  93,  97,  99,  112,  113, 
119,  123-125,  192,  265,  271,  279,  280,  288, 
360,  422,495,  510-512,  516,  551,  555,   557, 
567,  667,  711. 
Daniel,  25,  29-35,  113,  123. 

Pierson,  441. 

Pike,  12,  14,  16,  19,  20,  76,  94,  135,  137-139, 
159,  233,  235,  236,  264,  289,  348,  370,  393, 
495,  497,  510-512,  550,  594,  599,  608,  616, 
649,  664,  668,  691,  695. 

Piker,  393. 

Pillow,  6gi. 

Pillsbury,  51-54,  92,  349,  3^6,  387,  437,  495. 

Pilsbury,  308,  348,  393,  711. 
Pillsbury  House,  52-54. 
Pine  Swamp,  12S. 

Pingry,  628. 


Pipe  -Stave  Hill,  339-346,  476. 

Pirkins,  710. 

Piscataqua,  3S0. 

Pitsbury,  393. 

Place.  543. 

Plaintield,  N.  J.,  132. 

Plaistow,  England,  317. 

Plan  of  First  Settlement  at  Oldtown,  14. 

Plan  of  Spencer- Pierce  Farm,  177S,  39,  90. 

Plant,    222,    237,   382-386,   388,  3S9,  391,    393, 
396-398,  401-404,  406,  419,  508. 
Rev.  Matthias,  237,  3S2-386,  396,  401-403. 

Plate,  Old  Church,  405-407. 

Plum  Island,  201,  212,  220,  462,  575,  581,  591, 
663,  675. 

Plum  Island  Sound,  10. 

Plum    Island   Turnpike  and   P>ridge    Corpora- 
tion, 217-219. 

Plumer,  105,   106,   108,   146,   181,  250,  434,  510, 
512,  536. 

Plummer,  14,  21,  145,   150,   176,  393,  512,  530, 

531-  536,  537,  709- 
Plymouth,  England,  317,  456. 

^lassachusetts,  loS. 
"Pocahontas"  Ship,  Wreck  of,  220,  462,  463. 
Poets,  662,  684-686. 
Pole,  276. 
Police  Station,  622. 
Politics,  668,  697. 
Poole,  276,  329. 
Poor,  154,  280,  2S3,  294,  303,  495,  510,  536,  537, 

543- 
Poore,    24,    81-83,   93,   236,  282,  283,  348-353, 
355,  367,  393,  414,  530,  535- 

Benjamin,  351. 

Ben:  Perley,  351-353,  355- 

John,  24,  81-83. 

Samuel,  348,  349. 
Poore  House,  81-83. 
Poore' s  Lane,  282. 
Poore  Tavern,  83. 
Popkin,  100. 
Port  Hudson,  La.,  697, 
Port  Royal,  Jamaica,  48. 
Porter,  522. 
Portland,  Me..  185,  310,  311,  331,  440,  470,  616, 

687. 
Portraits,  479,  558,  566-568,  644,  673. 
Portsmouth,  England,  553. 

New  Hampshire,  114,  161,  222,  244,  266,  319. 
342,  371,   384,   405,   417,   485,  491,   493,  503, 
504,  521,  526,  527,  529,  553,  579,  640,  645. 
Portugal,  553, 
Post  Riders,  677. 
Powwow  River,  63. 
Prayers,  9,  10 1. 
Presbur)'.  510,  512. 
Prescott,  225,  336,  337. 
Presson,  431. 
Price,  401. 

Rev.  Roger,  401. 
Prime,  527. 
Prince,  187,  410,  440,  521,  559-561,  594,  608. 

James,  559-561- 

Rev.  Joseph,  521,  561. 
Princeton,  N.  J.,  641. 
Printers,  683,  685,  686. 
Pritchard,  489,  491. 
Privateers,  641. 
Proudfit,  523. 
Prout,  156,  410,  481,  594. 
Providence,  R.  I.,  319,  576,  577,  680,  704. 
Provoost,  409,  410. 
Prussia,  485. 
Public    Librar\',    Newbur\-port,    547,    551-563, 

566,  572,  650. 
Punishments,  98. 

Putnam,    76,    77,    137,    192-197,    200,  349,  503, 
587,  640,  676. 

Oliver,  192-197. 
Putnam  Free  School,  194-196. 


IXDEX 


QIAKKKS.   K...  27... 
(Juascacimquen  (  Newbury).  Mass..   h.. 
lju.»scaciinquen  River,  y,  10. 
Cjuebec.    Canada,   97,    i')2,  3cS.  43^.    4^5-497. 

507,  640. 
Queen's  County,  X.  S.,  6S1. 
Oueen  .Anne's  Cliapel,  237.  .i'k'^,  37'-.^■'^7•  S'^'J- 

3f/'- 
C»uincy.  5(14. 
IJuincy,  Alass.,  41^. 
Quincey,  72,  73. 

RAIl.RO.VDS,  (154.  655.  674    ■ 
Kani  Island,  55,  58,  62. 
Kaiiisdi-n,  711. 

Kand,  i.j,.  4K1,  413.  4i(>,  594,  599. 
Randolph,  45. 
Rapallu.  'sv- 
Rate  Lots.  34S. 
Rawlines.  3i).<. 
Rawlings,  121. 
Rawlins,  3S1,  393. 
Rawson,    15,  21,  27,  42-51,  53,   54,  62,  91-94, 

101,  169,   US3,  231,  232,  236,  24S,  276,  277. 
Kdward,  15,  42-5'. 
Records  of  Newbury,  13.  15.  23,  92. 
Reed.  4,  524,  712. 
Reli.uious  Services,  I''irsl.   I'l. 
Rcniiik.  2.S3,  476. 
Representatives,  170,  171. 
Revere,  413. 
Revolutionary  War,  S3,  96,  97,   162,   193,  213, 

4-'*')-  .S5''  Yv^-  5''".    565.   5^'9.   570>   5*>3.   '>4o, 

641,  1143,  659. 
Rhode   Island,   17,   iS,   31,   291,  319,  403,  40!^, 

410,  416.  470,  570,  5S3. 
Rh/iarii.  114. 
Richards,  510,  7<>9>  7"- 
Richardson,    107,   loS,   112,    11..,    142.   i4C>.   iSi, 

233.  3'M.  393.  4 '9-  523-  575- 
Richison,  i.Si. 
Ridgeway,  25S. 
Ridgway,  4S7. 
Ring,  122,  1S3,  1S4,  639. 
Ring's  Island,  64,  70,  74,  1^4. 
Ripp.  (m-. 

"  Rising  Empire."  Shi]),  (151. 
Roads,  201,  394. 
Roberts,  3^10,  399,  4<k),  594,  j.yy, 
Robin.  127. 
Robinson,  75,  297.  344.  345. 

I  )r.  Dean,  345. 
Robud.  41)9. 
Roby,  4.,5 

Rochanibeau,  503,  579. 
Rochesti-r.  \.  Y.,  691. 
Rockport,  .Mass.,  697. 
Rogers,   77,   141,   149,  241,  253,  310,  376.  37S. 

381,384,393,431,  465,  510,   520,  529,   543, 

5S6,  6S9,  711. 
Rolf,  665. 
Rolfe,  14,  19,  53,  71,  95,  97,  155,    157.    i.^[,   21S, 

219,  265,  272,  4SS,  543. 
Rf)lfe's  I.ane,  95,  97. 
Rollins,  343. 

Roman  Catholics,  299,  337. 
Rope  Walks,  ()io,  Oi  i. 
Rosario,  .Argentine  Republic,  655. 
Rose,  575. 
Ross,  14. 
Rowlbury,  293. 
Rowley,  Mass.,  !SS,  104,  170,  204,  205,  207,  212, 

213.  223,  225,  247,  251,  264,  275,  293,  294, 

29'>.   30Oi  303.  3'^  3'7.  328,  345,  497.  S^7' 

■i29. 
Roxl)ury,  Mass.,  116,  313,  579,  6-9. 
Ruggles,  2!i7. 
kuinford,  N.  H.,  273. 
Kunisev,  47,  4S,  307. 
Russell,  38,  156,  511,  557,  558,  57,;,  710. 

'I'lionias,  558. 
Russia,  55S. 


Rust.  237. 
Rutland,  \'t..  'o(>. 

S.VCO,   MK.,   161. 
.Safi'ord,  5  n  • 

Saleby,  England,  638. 

Salem',  Mass.,  20,  27,  28,  30,  32,  34,  40,  45,  50, 
65,  69,  71,  73,  74,  87,  88,  103,  104,  120,  123, 
t66,  176,  177,  180,  181,  183,  186,  201,  203, 
206,  208,  239,  243,  250,  251,  254,  259,  266, 
278,  299,  406,  409,  411,  418,  436,  453,  455, 
477,  479.  482.  484.  487.  505.  535.  538-  553, 
557,  5<^o,  564-  5<^5<  575,  577,  587,  620,  639, 
671,  673,  69S. 

Salisbury,  Mass.,  12,  55,  57-63,  65-70,  72-74, 
76,  79,  122,  157,  169,  183,  184,  187-189,  221, 
222,  227,  235,  236,  238-246,  250,  253,  27S, 
283,  345,  359,  394,  395,  432,  475,  496,  556, 
593,  595,  597,  603,  639,  665,  6S3,  705,  709- 
712. 

.Salisbury  River,  fio,  62. 

Salter,  564. 

.Saltonstall,  9,  313. 

San  Antonio,  Tex.,  227. 

San  Francisco,  Cal.,  351. 

Sanborn,  495,  510. 

Sandford,  276. 

Sandy  Hay  Harbor  of  Refuge,  697. 

.Sanford,  276. 

"  .Sapphire,"  Ship,  163. 

•Sargant,  431. 

•Sargeant,  393. 

Sargent,  60-75,  "'-^  "8,  119,  122,  148,  149,  159, 
161,   185,  300,  329,  62S,  629,  641. 
Edward,  161. 

.Sargent's  Tavern,  161. 

Saugus,  Mass.,  201,  203,  675,  677. 

.Savage,  293. 

Savory,  283,  393. 

Sawyer,   187,   333,   339,   341,  350,  357-360.  362, 
363,  367,   370,   373,   376,  378,  381,  384,  41 ', 
434,  457,   510,   543,   544,   594,  599.  661. 
Dr.  Micajah,  457. 

Sawyer's  Hill  Burying  Ground,  362-367. 

Sawyer's  Hill  Meeting-house,  363-36(1,  36S-370, 
378. 

.Sawyer  House,  357-361. 

Saye'r,  393. 

Sayor,  348,  393. 

Scape-thrift,   187. 

Scarboro',  Me.,  333. 

Scarlett,  493. 

School,  First,  17. 

Schools,  104-108,  132,  433,  434,  613-617,  637, 
641;,  656,  657,  676,  683,  689. 

School-houses,  199,  433. 

.School-house  on  the  Mall,  614-616. 

School  Teachers,  172. 

Schoulcr,  (179. 

Scituate,  Mass..  665,  704. 

Scotland,  27S,  351,  514. 

.Scudder,  342. 

.Scullard,  19,  12S,  269. 

.Seabury,  401). 

Seagul,  1S7 

Seagull,  187. 

Seamens,  680. 

Searl,  542. 

Searle,  417,  594,  599,  709-711. 

Sears,  y(>. 

Seawall,  248,  252. 

Second  Congregational  Chuicli.  .Meoting-house 
of,  635. 

Second  Presbyterian  Meeting-house,  641;. 

Seddon,  1S8. 

Sergant,  281. 

.Serjeant,  19,  27. 

Serjeant,  186. 

Sermons,  470. 

Settlement  of  Neubury,  First.  10,  n,  13. 

Sevier,  709,  710. 

'vSewall,  1),  21,   51,  71-73,  88,  90,   101-103,   '07, 


INDEX 


727 


Sewall  {continued). 

112,     113,     116,      1S7,     247-251^,     261-267,     2S<J, 

291,   293-297,    305.    307-3"3.    315.    317.    322. 
323.   369,   374>   375.   37S.   422.   43".  432.  449. 
510,  612. 
Henry,  g,  loi,  247-252. 

Judge    Samuel,    loi,    247,   250-259,  293-296, 
/         307-310.  323.  449- 
■/Sewall  House,  loi. 
Shackford,  437,  492,  510. 
Shaftesbury,  Vt.,  703. 
Shakspere,  187. 
Shattuck,  506. 
Shaw,  506,  576,  709-7 1 1 . 
Sheaf,  629. 
Sheep,  127. 
Shepard,  79. 
Sherlock,  386,  403. 
Ships,  163,  709-712. 
Ship-building,  275-285,  709-712. 
Ship-masters,  22. 
Ship-yards,  275-2S5 

Samuel  Moggaridge's,  349. 
Shirley,  459,  514- 
Short,  9,  14,  15,  25,  70,  74,  91,  93,  94,  105,  158, 

251,  265,  272,  30S,  309,  313,  495. 
Shove,  107,  loS,  266. 

Seth,  266. 
Shrimpton,  257. 

Shuts,  133,  253,  319,  322,  3^3.  I'^iy  sg''^- 
/    Governor  Samuel,  319,  322. 
■^//Sibley,  494. 
Sibly,  494. 

Siege  of  Louisburg,  465.  467-469,  485-488. 
Silver,  18-20. 
Simmons,  398. 
Simpson,  563. 
.Sinclair,  524. 
Sisters  of  Charity,  337. 
Skelton,  673. 
Slavery,  298. 

Abolition  of,  6S4-6S6. 
Small,  196.  " 
.Small-po.\,  71,  265. 

Smith,    14,   47,   53,   87,    118,    127,    12S.   iSi,  200, 
217.   308,  328,   336,   349,  37**.  379.  393.   407. 
442,   469,   543,   569,   589.  599,  609,  661,  709- 
712. 
Smugghng,  53. 
Snell,  640. 
Snelling,  129,  453. 

Dr.  William,  453. 
Snow,  662. 

Society  for  the  Relief  of  Aged  Females,  658. 
Solomon,  518. 
Somands,  384. 

.Somerby,   15,   17,   19,  20,  27,  28,  31,  32,  71,  72, 

87,   104,  143,   146,   150,    162,    170,    181,   191, 

223,   265,   281,   287,   339,  347,  394,  433,   434, 

569,  595,  610,  612,  620,  649. 

Somersby,  105,  109,  118,  122,  127-130,  231,  232, 

251.  633- 
South  America,  194,  651,  652,  654,  704. 
.Southampton,  England,  11,  269,  313. 
.Spain,  669. 
Spalding,  633,  673. 
Sparhawk,  436. 

Spencer,  9,  14,  18,  20,  25-32,  34,  35,  39,  90,  101, 
213,  235,  291,  551,  555,  557,  567. 

John,  9,  25-32,  34,  35. 
.Spencer- Pierce  House,  25-41,  90,  555,  557,  567. 
Spendall,  187. 
Spitingfield,  710. 
Spofford,  41,  223,  225,  226,  22q.  649. 

Harriet  Prescott,  225,  226.  229. 

Dr.  Richard  S..  225.' 

Hon.  Richard  S.,  223.225. 
Sprague,  131. 
Spring,  608. 

.Springfield,  Mass.,  329. 
Squamscott  Falls,  N.  H.,  639. 


St.  Domingo,  461. 

.St.  Eustatius,  643. 

St.  John,  N.  B.,  70s. 

St.  Paul's  Church,  Newburyport.  396-419.  583. 

.St.  .Sauveur,  461. 

Staffordshire,  England,  389. 

Stamp-distributor  hung.  Effigy  of,  500. 

Stamford,  Conn.,  417. 

Stanwood,  343,  344,  446,  481,  499,  500,  5S8,  709- 

711. 
Stapleton,  441. 
.Starkey.  458,  459. 

Capt.  William,  458,  459. 
.State  Street,  38.  95. 
Statue  of  Washington,  621. 
Staves,  345. 

Ste.  Rose,  Guadaloupe,  462. 
Steams,  417,  523,  524. 
Stephens,  165. 
Stetson,  504,  561,  589,  680. 
Stevens,  118,  169,  222,  240,  329,  465,  495. 
Stevenson,  710. 
.Stewart,  275,  317. 

Duncan,  275. 
Stickney,  103,  118,  128,  134,  2S0,  464,  497,   565, 

577.  sSii-. 
Stillwater,  N.  \  .,  659. 
Stor-ker,  133,  134,  153,  217,  442,   445,  487,  643, 

654,  710. 
Stockman,  599. 
.Stoddard,  51. 
Stone,    130,    IQ5,   240,   479,  482,   569,  625,  655, 

664,  693-699,  705,  711. 
Hon.  Eben  F.,  693-699,  705. 
Storey,  503. 
.Storms,  462,  537. 
Storre,  638. 
Stoughton,  116,  2S9. 
Stowell,  447. 

Rev.  (ieorge  L.,  447. 
Stratton,  276. 
Streets,  118-121. 

Early,  18-20,  24,  94,  95,  97,  103,  104. 
Street  Railways,  217. 
Stretton,  277. 
.Strickland,  522. 
.Strong,  480. 
Struthers,  522. 
Sudbury,  Mass.,   149. 
Sullivan,  40S,  470,  583. 
Sumersby,  476. 
Sumner,  698. 
Sun  Hotel,  559. 
.Sunderland,  687. 
.Sutherland,  172. 
Swain,  625. 

Swasey,  243-246,  431,  593,  636. 
Swazey,  594. 
.Sweat,  710,  711. 
.Sweazy,  245. 
.Sweet,  495. 
Sweete,  221. 
Swett,  90,  109,  176,  177,  189,  236,  239,  240,  392, 

393,  395.  495.  553. 
.Swett's  Ferry,  395. 
Swett" s  Tavern,  90,  176,  1S9. 
Swinburne,  6Sg. 

John,  689. 
.Symonds,  31,  61,  69,  74. 
.Syms,  665. 

JAILER,  257,  323- 
•      Tailors,  103. 
Taleyrand,  579,  581-5S3. 
Baron  de,  579,  581-583. 
Talleyrand,  500,  5S2,   583. 
Tannatt,  398-400. 
Tanneries,  172. 
Tanners,  17,  18,  237. 
Tapan,  250.  251. 
Tappan,  251,  370,  543,  700,  702. 


728 


INDEX 


Taverns,  53,  57,  64,  72.  79.  82,  83,  88,  90,   108, 
icx),   175-1S4,    iSi),   228,  492,  493,  498,  499, 
502-507,  58'>-5S«.  675- 
First,  21. 

Tavlor,  ii(>,  178,  295,  709,  711. 

Tebbetts,  505. 

Teel,  594. 

Temple.  599. 

Templenian,  603. 

Tenney,  621. 

Teiixbury,  235,  236. 

Thacher,  28,  29. 

Thames  River,  9. 

Thaxter,  430,  431. 

Tlietford,  Vt.,  616,  665. 

Third  Parish  in  Newbur>',  430-443,  453. 

Third  Parish  Meeting-house,  122,  622. 

Thomas,  31,  32,  87,  103,  175,  235,  408,  410,  419, 
453>  5f'7-57o.  573>  597.  643,  709.  7".   7i2. 
Capt.  Thomas,  5(18-570,  573. 

Thompson,  4,  309,  353,  363-366. 

Tliorla,  543. 

Thorlay,  202,  204-206,  208,  275,  530. 

Thorlay's  liridge,  104,  201,  202. 

Thornton,   108. 

Thurlay,  204,  205. 

Thurley,  206-208. 

Thurlo,  208,  336. 

Thurloe,  161. 

Thurlow,  194,  336,  673. 

Thurston,  24,  93,  133,  536. 

Tidmarsh,  459. 

Tileston,  493. 

Tilley,  255. 

Tilton,  495.  505. 

Titcomb,  27,  81,  iiS,  119,  122,  125,  127-129, 
'33.  '39.  '42,  145.  159.  185,  192,  193.  232, 
233,  235,  237,  277,  280,  281,  2S7,  333,  347, 
432-434,  438,  439,  453,  464-473,  510,  513, 
5'8,  572,  579.  594.  &'3,  633,  635,  636,  644, 
645. 
Col.  Moses,  438,  464-473. 
William,  464,  465.  , 

Titcomb  House,  471-473. 

Titcomb  .Street,  635. 

Titcombe,  231,  232. 

Titles,  139. 

Tittcomb,  450. 

Todd,  496,  505,  510,  545,  563,  570,  573. 

Tom.  347. 

Tompson,  106,  107. 

Toocker,  628. 

Topan,  248,  262,  267. 

Toppan,  14,  17,  90,  93,97,  98,  loi,  108,  iii,  112, 
132,   172,   173,   199,  248,  250,  253,  260-267, 
347.  365,  ^bi.),  390,  410,  411,  430,  432,  434, 
449.  457.  509.  5'o.  545.  594.  599.  709.  7"- 
-Abraham,  262-264. 
Rev.  Christopher,  250,  509. 

I'oppan  House,  260,  261,  265,  267. 

Topsfield,  Mass.,  132,  193,  503,  659. 

Torrey,  62. 

'I'own  Clerks,  143,  170,  171. 

Town  House,  F'irst,  198-200. 

'i'ownsend,  281. 

Tracey,  533. 

Tracy,  37,  38,  155,  156,  162,  335,  356,  396,  39S, 
3W,  408-410,  4iy,  450,  451,  454,  455,  465, 
477,  535.    545-5'».    563-5f>9.   572,  577,   579, 
581,  5.S3,  5,S4,  fe,S,  612,  613,  650. 
John,  579,  583,  584. 

Nathaniel,  37,  38,  162,  455,  551-555,  557-559- 
Patrick,  3.8,   545-551,   555,  SS7.   5f>5.  577.  579, 
5X4- 

Fracv  House,  650. 

Tracfing  Houses,  9. 

Training  (Ireen,  </>,  91,  96,  97,  103. 

Trask,  10,  291. 

Travelling,  203. 

Travels,  652. 

Travers,  14,  <^,  101,  102,  248. 

Trees,  173,  30'-3"4.  425-429.  703. 


Trees,  Pearson  Elm,  301-304. 

Old  Elm  of  Xewbur>',  424-429. 
Trenton.  X.  J.,  641. 
Troops  on  Plum  Island,  213. 
Trowbridge,  331. 

Tucker,  99,   112,   135,  147,   148,   158,    280,    497, 
509,  628. 

Rev.  John,  509. 
Tufts,  3S1,  391,  393,  431,  432. 
Tukky,  252. 
Tunnell,  449. 
Turkey  Hill,  49,  286-290. 
Turner,  10,  291. 
Turnpikes,  217-219. 
Tuttle,  227. 
Tuxbury,  244. 
Twombly,  299. 
Tyler,  131,  594,  599,  700-711. 
Tyley,  71. 

Tyng,  155,  223,  407,  410,  411,  413,  419,  559,  579, 
594.  599)  ''87.  69 1  • 

I  [NITED   STATES,  i6i,  215-217,325,333, 
'-'     353,  408,  417,  471,  4S0,   555,  556,  558,  578, 

579,  591,  667-669,  685. 
Upliam,  I. 

Upper  Commons,  345. 
Upper  Creen,  17,  24. 
"  Uriah,"  Ship,  643. 
Usher,  114. 

X/ALPARAISO,  CHILI,  652-654,  657. 
V      Van  Buren,  418. 
Vane,  247. 
A'arnum,  6S4. 
Vassar  College,  704. 
Vaudreuil,  579,  5S1,  583. 

Viscount  de,  579,  581,  583. 
Vauglian,  638. 
"  Vengeance,"  Ship,  569. 
Veren,  183. 

Vermilye,  51S,  523,  524. 
Vermont,  542,  616. 
Verren,  207. 
Versailles,  France,  555. 
\'essels,  709. 
Villard,  686. 
Vinal.  407,  610,  61 1. 
Vincent,  375. 
Vinson,  34. 
Vinton,  319. 
Virginia,  178,  409,  66g. 
Voltaire,  692. 

WADE,  288,  289. 
Wadleigh,  712. 
W'ainwright,  124,  1S5-187,  301,  303. 
Wales  1 15,  496. 
Walker,  159,  317,  493,  676. 
Wallace.  524. 
Wailington,  102. 
Walsh."6i5,  667. 

Michael,  615. 
Waltham,  Mass.,  329. 
Wanton,  319. 

War  of  1812,  163,  675,  677. 
Warbeton,  487. 
Ward,  495. 
Wardwell.  98. 

\\'ardweirs,  I.vdia,  Case,  98. 
Warehouse  Point,  70. 
Warner,  N.  H.,  237. 
Warren,  625. 
Warville,  342.  555. 
Warwick,  Kngland.  252. 
Warwick  County,  England,  103,  251. 
Washburn,  418. 

Rev.  Edward  .A.,  41S. 
Washington,   38,   216,   245,   343.   543,  551,  556, 

5':'.  565.  5«V  573-  578,  625,  641. 
Wa.sliington's  Visit,  556,  561. 
Washington,  IJ.  C,  225,  285,  335,  343,  353,  355, 


INDEX 


729 


Washington,  D.  C.  (continued).  ' 

4S0,  4S2,  561,  643,   655,   66S,   669,   676,  679, 

Water  Supply  of  Newburyport,  237. 
Waters,  201,  693. 

Watertown,  Mass.,  32,  33,  130,  565. 
Watkins,  3. 
Watson,  393,  417,  ■^11. 

Watts,   112,   iig,   120,   122,   125,    143,    145,   14^, 
151,    152,   154,    157-159,  177,    17^-   233,   249. 
250,  280,  281. 
Watts'  Cellar,  95,  iiS,  120,  122,  143,  15S. 
Waverly,  Iowa,  689. 
Weavers,  103. 
Webster,  34,  98,   108,  118,   142,  175,   179,  228, 

243-246,  270,  348,  375,  484,  593,  712. 
Webster,  Mass.,  616. 
Weed,  118,  132,  135-137- 
Weed  House,  136. 
Weire,  20. 

Wells,  147,  485,  486,  510,  512,  709,  711. 
Wells,  Me.,  639,  640. 
Wendell,  599. 
Wentwortli.  581. 

West  Indies,  345,  545,  633,  643,  651. 
West  Newbury,   Mass.,   13,  22,  270,  319,  344, 
345,  34S,  350,  351,   355,   363,   367,   378,   476, 
620,  677. 
West  Newbury,  Map  of,  339,  341,  348. 
West  Parish,  Slap  of,  391,  392,  395. 
West  Parish, Inhabitants  of,  393. 
West  Point,  N.  V.,  659. 
West  Springfield,  Mass.,  512. 
Weston,  Mass.,  556. 
Wexford  County,  Ireland,  545. 
Wharves,  119,  122,  123,  151-163. 

First,  151. 
Wheeler,  123,  148,  149,  510. 
Wheelwright,  3y,  ^^'3,  i^   }/3,  y^^  ^g^h  -S^- 
3/^,   3^,   5;»'5.    5/4,   58*),  b/s/<^-'y^,   b/-h 
65^-f^,  &>♦.  bf<,  7J/4,  ^/l. 

Abraham,  6_j«-6^. 

Isaac  W.,  2W?. 

Jeremiah,  o^. 

Rev.  John,'5aS. 

Col.  John,  b^. 

Col.  Samuel,  63^. 

William,  bj^-bxj<  j/^. 
Wheelwright's,  Ebenezer,  House,  b/^i. 
Whipple,  450,  568. 

White,  112,  123,  134,  151-155,  157,  177,  17S, 
180,  409,  410,  418,  440,  445,  4S0,  520,  594, 
633,  637- 

Rev.  John  C,  41S. 

Capt.  Paul,  151,  177,  178,  iSo. 
White  Hall,  Eng.,  9. 
White  Plains,  N.  Y.,  641,  659,  689. 
White's  Point,  68. 
Whitefield,  434,  508,  519,  521-529,  561. 

Rev.  (leorge,  434,  50S,  521-527. 
Whitney,  676. 
Whittier.  47,  173,  227,  461,  524,  684. 

John  G.,  173,  6S4. 
Whitwell,  557. 
Wicom,  289. 

Wigglesworth,  265,  390,  5S1,  586,  599. 
Wigsteps,  581. 
Wilcomb,  465. 
Wilde,  609,  667. 
Wilkinson,  506. 


Wilkinsonville,  Mass.,  49. 
Will  of  Kichard  Bartlett,  231. 
Richard  Dole,  18. 
Daniel  Pierce,  33. 
John  Spencer,  27,  28. 
Willard,  254. 
Willet,  369,  393,  610,  612. 
U'i/liauiy  Khig,  278,  406. 
Williams.  299,  337,  373,  376,  3S4,  393,  523,  524, 

608,  624. 
Willis,  689,  691,  709,  712. 
Wills,  337,  55''^- 
Wilmington,  Del.,  679. 
Wilson,  414,  573,  614. 
Wiltshire,  Eng.,  9,  81,  165,  230. 
Winchester,  Ky.,  645. 
Windmill,  610,  611. 
Winder,  524. 
Window,  102. 
Wingate,  506. 
Wingley,  55. 
Winsor,  201. 
Winter  Hill,  640. 
Winthrop,  y,  11,  20,  85,  86,   116,  201,  203,  247, 

291,  293,  315. 
Wiswall.  51. 

Witchcraft,  120,  140,   147,  254. 
Withington,  4,  417,  704. 

Rev.  Leonard,  704. 
Woart,  410,  414,  693. 
Wolf,  4S6. 

Wolfe,  496,  498,  504,  506,  507,  589,  640. 
Wolfe  Tavern,  492,  493,  498,  499,  502-507,  561, 

589. 
Wood,  85,  410,  655. 
Woodbery,  712. 
Woodbridg,  207. 
Woodbridge,  15,  27,  30,  32,  34,  43,  71,  72,  90, 

91,   103,   105,   107,  112,   119,   151-155,    177- 

179,  187,  191,  207,  251,  255,  257,  281,  317, 

39S-400,  402,  404,  564. 
Rev.  John,  103. 
Woodbridge,  N.  J.,  704. 
Woodbury,  584. 
Woodland  Street,  50.  92. 
Woodman,   14,  21,  23,  27,  43,  88,  91,  93,  100, 

105,  106.  127,   129,   181,  213,  236,  248,  252^ 

261,  262,  266,  269,  270,  275-277,  287,  297, 

331,  393,  394,  432,  434,  495,  635- 
Jonathan,  275-277. 
Woodmansey,  76,  255. 
Woodstock,  Vt.,  616. 
Woodwell,  279. 
Worcester,  303. 
Worcester,  Mass.,  556. 
Worth,  393.  C 
Woster,  510.  " 

Wrecks,  462,  463,  651,  652,  704. 
Write,  487. 
Wyatt.  495. 
Wyer,  410,  569,  571,  586,  58S,  594,  599,  710. 

"YANKEE    HERO,"  Privateer,  4S9. 

I  Yarmouth,  263. 
Yarmouth,  Mass.,  108. 
Yonkers,  N.  Y.,  345. 

York,  Me.,  61,  130,  310,  311,  316,  324,  526,  527. 
York  County,  Me.,  640. 
Yorktown,  Va. ,  583. 
Young,  311. 


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OCT  22  1987 


/         UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA,  BERKELEY 
FORM  NO.  DD6,  60m,  3/80  BERKELEY,  CA  94720 


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GENERAL  LIBRARY  -  U.C.  BERKELEY 


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